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GENERAL OFFICES, HOUSTON, TEXAS. 






Copyrighted, 1S82, 
By T. W. PEIRCK, Jr. 



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AMERlf.AN BANK NOTE rOMPANY, NEW VORK, 



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PREFATORY. 



"^X 7ITH the approach of cold weather, persons of deUcate health, invalids and con- 
valescents, wish to escape the long and rigorous winters of elsewhere, and feel that 
irresistible desire to go somewhere, which impels them to ask the all-important question : 
"Where shall we go? " It is the object of this little work to answer that interrogatory, 
and furnish the increasing number of tourists and seekers after health such information and 
suggestions as will enable them to find the desired haven in the winter resorts of this sunny 
clime. 

Here are found the mild climate, the healthy atmosphere, the beautiful and romantic 
scenery, combined with a refined society and all the luxuries known to the enlightenment 
and civilization of the nineteenth century, in a degree not equaled by any resorts of similar 
character in the United States. 

Without fear of successful contradiction, we can exclaim, " Euieka ! The sanitarium 
for mental and bodily ailments has been discovered in western Texas." Thither you go, 
via the Star and Crescent and Sunset Route, so beautifully and happily named 
from the fact that it carries the tourist where the flitting sunbeams kiss their sweet good- 
night to Texas and to America. This line forms also a most important link in the great 
Southern Pacific, which, alone, reaches from ocean to ocean, and enables the busy 
denizens of both the Atlantic Seaboard and the Pacific Slope, to cross the continent from 
summer to summer, without the interruption of snow storms and ice blockades (often of 
weeks' duration) on the way. The managers of the Star and Crescent and Sunset link 
are expending means and putting forth extraordinary efforto to add luxury to the comforts 
they already have for the ease and convenience of summer ar.d winter travelers. ^Vhether 
the trip is limited to a day or a month, it matters not, for the traveler can exercise his 
pleasure in stopping off at intei-vals, or continuing as his inclination dictates. Tickets for 
this especial purpose can\e purchased of any and all ticket agents of the road. 

From this time forward, passengers may travel either day or night, or both day and 
night, with the most perfect comfort, as the company runs two daily trains, which arrive 
at and leave the Union Depot in Houston, the great railroad centre of the state. On these 
trains are the elegant sleeping and parlor-car accommodations, which, in Texas, are to be 
found only on the Sunset Route, and which make traveling for the aged and infirm 
rather a relief than a lax. Oh, what a glorious change ! What a wonderful contrast to the 
jolting of an old stage-coach, the sluggish drag of a "prairie schooner," or the exhausting 
jog of a broken-down horse ; these, only a few years ago, were the sole methods of 
traversing this then wild and unexplored wilderness. 



"THE TRUE SOUTHERN PACIFIC. 



\ MAGNIFICENT highway is now (jpened from New Orleans to San 
-^ ^ Francisco, and is naturally the nearest and most popular route to 
the West and Southwest. The tide of travel from European and 
Asiatic countries, and from the far-off islands of the great Pacific Ocean, 
can now cross this jjart of America, in iess time and with greater safety, 
than by any other steam or railroad line on the globe. Industries will 
rise, and have already risen, by the opening of these wonderful trans- 
continental lines, and to two men chiefly is due the honor of this timely 
and great enterprise — C. P. Huntington and Thomas W. Peirce, To 
them belongs the credit of having given to the world at large a new 
empire of trade, commerce, industry and agricultrue, by the construction 
of this grand highway in the interests of all nations ! 




STAR AND CRESCENT ROUTE. 





VyV HE crescent nioou in oriental skies 

Wanes as the stars of western empires rise ; 
And hansjs above the ocean's eastern rim, 
In pallid beauty, shining still, but dim. 



IGH upon azure fields of upper air 

The glittering stars of Occident appear, 
And blaze in noons of night and sink to rise 
When sets the sun in occidental skies. 



?ROM desert lands of Araby and seas 
Of tropic climes, and where the southern breeze 
Fans languid leaves of citron, whose perfume 
Makes drowsy atmosphere iii isles of bloom, 

VVEACHES an influence deep and ocean-wide, 

'% Sti-ong as the subtie might of rising tide, 
J^\ Linking the eastern mount and western plain. 
Binding the western shores and eastern main. 



/{CIENCE, thou goddess of the mighty West, 
^ Lo! shining full upon thy gene-ous breast, 
}j And gleaming on thy brow ; light seen afar ! 
Behold the mingled Crescent and the Star! 



T 



MBLEMS of power, that embraces earth 
From sea to sea in eciuatorial girth. 
Mild as the moon's pale crescent and so l)right 
As ruddy stars in tropic skies of night. 

H, peaceful Union ! Promise of a day 

\Mien different lights shall blend in single ray, 
When earth shall move as one harmonious \\hole. 
And mild-eyed Peace shall reign fiom pole to pole. 



From New Orleans to El Paso and Mexico, 



VIA THE 



''STAR AND CRESCENT" AND "■SUNSET" ROUTE. 



LOUISIANA. 



THIS state, justly called the "Pearl of the 
South," has an area of 44,426 square 
miles ; an area of 2,507,935 acres in cultiva- 
tion ; and a population (white and colored) of 
nearly one million within fifty-eight parishes 
(i. e. counties), of which Baton Rouge of East 
Baton Rouge Parish is the capital. Organized 
as the Territory of Orleans, March 3d, 1805, 
Louisiana was admitted into the Union under 
its present name April 8th, 1812. Seceding 
January 25th, 1861, it was readmitted into the 
Union, June 25th, 1868. 

THE COMPLETED RAILROADS ARE : 

Baton Rouge, Grosse Tete and Opelousas. 

Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans. 

Clinton and Port Hudson. 

Louisiana Western. 

Morgan'' s Louisiana and Texas. 

New Orleans and Mobile. 

New Orleans Pacific. 

Vicksburg, Shreveport and Pacific. 

West Feliciana. 

Texas Pacific. 

Total miles of roads in state, nearly 800. 

PROJECTED RAILROADS ARE : 

Louisiana Midland. 
Natchez, Texas and Pacific. 
Vermillionville and Baton Rouge. 
New Orleans and Northeastern. 
Mississippi \'alley. 
New Orleans, Red River and Texas. 
Total number of miles in and partly within 
the state, nearly 1000. 

NAVIGABLE STREAMS. 

Besides the railroads above mentioned, Louis- 
iana has many water-ways, lakes, lagoons, 
bayous, rivers, etc., covering an area of over 
3770 miles ; and the U. S. engineers are now 
at work on a number of streams in Louisiana, 
and expect to add 240 miles of navigation to 
the water communication of the state within a 
year. 



At present our space does not permit us to 
give more statistical details in regard to phys- 
ical divisions, prices of United States and state 
lands of the state of Louisiana ; but we may 




speak of these in another issue. Nor can we 
dwell at length upon the history of Louisiana, 
but will commence our synoptical tourist's diary 
with the 

HARBOR OF NEW ORLEANS. 

In viewing the port of New Orleans, the 
stranger obtains on either land or river side so 
grand and eminent a sight that it is hardly 
possible for him ever to forget it. The levees 
of the metropolis of the Mississippi, as well as 
the Broadway of New York and the Chinese 
Quarter of San Francisco, may be considered 
as chiefest among the wonders of the New 
World. As an old traveler over North Amer- 
ica for many years, I cannot remember to have 
ever seen, within so small a frame, such an 
enchanting picture as is presented by the port 
of New Orleans. In portraying the beauties of 
American scenery, one is too apt to become 
extravagant, but in this case it would not be 
out of the way to be so, for the sight is one 
that demands an extravagant admiration. New 
Orleans is the greatest river port in the world. 
London, New York and even St. Petersburg, 



8 



HARBOR OF NEW ORLEANS. 



cannot be called river ports, since, although 
they are situated on rivers, their ships are 
mostly anchored on the great waters. Here, 
however, you have a port on whose one side 
roll the grand waves of the Atlantic ; while on 
the other, the largest river on earth, together 
with its tributaries, opens to navigation a ter- 
ritory of a million English square miles. No 
other port can boast of that. New Orleans 
was destined to be one of the most prominent 
commercial points of the continent, and though 
many circumstances, as the civil war, politi- 
cal disturbance, and the rivalry of other places 
threatened at one time to dwarf its noble 
capacities, the city must become again the 
main port of the whole Mississippi valley, on 
account of its geographical situation alone, 
setting aside its other striking advantages. The 
last few years already show a steady and de- 
cided increase in commerce. From '79 to '80, 
one-third of the whole cotton crop of the 
United States was conveyed to New Orleans, 
while New York received but one-fifth. The 
metropolis of Louisiana is the chief cotton cen- 
tre of the Union, and this can be easily believ- 
ed after a sight of the river at that city. The 
Mississippi here is not nearly so wide as at 
other places, but it has still a width of a kilo- 
meter, and a depth varying from 150 to 200 
feet, preventing all danger of ships foundering 
on sand banks. The docks of the steamers 
and sea vessels are on the leftside of the river, 
and upon the opposite side are the steamers 
and ferryboats of the Morgan line (that has 
been of so great assistance in the develop- 
ment of the commerce of New Orleans), and 
the depot of the but lately finished New 
Orleans and Texas Railway. In the midst of 
the river one sees a ie.vi ocean steamers, three- 
masted vessels and brigantines, and at the upper 
part of the port, lying at anchor, is a heavy 
American war-monitor, like the grim gate- 
keeper of the City of the Half Moon. These 
vessels, hardly moved by the high waves of 
the river, are only in the background of the 
scene that opens for miles on the long levees 
of the left side of the river. Dry -docks, har- 
bor-basins, stone-quays and the inevitable 
stereotyped necessities of all seaports, are 
quite unknown here. Their place is taken in 
New Orleans by a parquet, floored and made 
of heavy logs, extending along the whole river, 
partly resting on the mainland and partly 
floating on the water, the whole firmly fast- 
ened by anchors. At a probable estimate, this 
gigantic raft has a width of about 50 paces. 
Behind this there is a wide unpaved place 
stretching for miles along the river, which is 
the terminus of no less than 150 streets. Rail- 
road tracks cross the shore in all directions. 
Depots, warehouses, canvas sheds of immense 
extension, and finally, mountains of cotton 
bales, sugar and petroleum barrels, logs and 
lumber, occupy, here and there, parts of this 
extensive locality, and are far from filling it. 
Railroad trains, dozens of street cars, and hun- 
dreds of vehicles of every description, loaded 



or unloaded, pass up and down the streets in 
long uninterrupted trains. Thousands of people 
— office-holders, merchants, sailors, policemen, 
travelers, dealers in fruits and vegetaljles, and 
last, though by no means of the less import- 
ance, dock-hands — pass swiftly and busily 
among the cotton bales, agricultural imple- 
ments and other articles peculiar to docks and 
wharves. 

NEW ORLEANS THE METROPOLIS OF THE 
SOUTH. 

We quote here a pen sketch by the able 
writer, John E. Land : 

"Rich land! Noble history ! A land so 
fertile, God seems to have pronounced upon it 
his sweetest benediction. A climate so mildly 
tempered, ' the mock-bird has no winter in his 
song, no sorrow in his year.' A soil so gen- 
erous, it gave ample competence to all who 
came, and afforded ability to indulge, not only 
in those pursuits which tended to satisfy animal 
wants and desires, but softened into poetry the 
selfish passions, improved the moral and intel- 
lectual character and gave leisure for liberal 
studies and pursuits. Thus, with that tran- 
quility and leisure afforded by the enjoyment 
of accumulated riches, those speculative and 
elegant studies which enlarge views, purify 
tastes, and lift mankind higher in the scale of 
being were successfully prosecuted ; and thus 
do we account for the illustrious names New 
Orleans has furnished to the world --in law, in 
medicine, in divinity, in judicature, in com- 
merce, la military science and literary accom- 
plishments — names that enrich not only the 
biographical wealth of the city, but have been 
enrolled among the nomina clara of the 
Republic. 

." It should be an accepted fact, therefore, 
that the barbarism or refinement of a people, 
whether national or municipal, depends more 
on their wealth than on any other circumstance. 
No people have ever made any distinguished 
figure in philosophy or the fine arts without 
being celebrated at the same time for their 
employed riches and industries. Pericles and 
Phidias, Petrarch and Raphael, adorned the 
flourishing ages of Grecian and Italian com- 
merce. The influence of productive wealth in 
this respect is almost omnipotent. It raised 
Venice from the bosom of the deep, and made 
the desert and sandy islands on which she is 
built the powerful Mlueen of the Adriatic ;' it 
rendered the unhealthy swamps of Holland the 
favored abodes of literature, science and art ; 
and it has done as much, and will do vastly 
more, for New Orleans, the Imperial City of 
the Gulf — the midway mart of North and South 
America. 

"While it is true there are a few, even of 
our best informed citizens, who are sceptical as 
to the continuance of this magnificent pros- 
perity, and are evermore on the lookout for 
sudden and fatal checks to the city's trade and 
enlargement, it is equally as true that they fail 
to notice fully either what has already been 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 




lO 



THE ''CRESCENT CITYr 



accomplished or the unlimited resources about 
us yet undeveloped, but certainly to be drawn 
upon, in the grander conquests of the not dis- 
tant future. Let us, therefore, be candid with 
all such, and assert without fear of successful 
contradiction, that the very best assurance of 
the continued healthful progress of New Orleans 
is found in what she is to-day — a centre of 
enormous trade, in spite of some of the most 
unfavorable surroundings and drawbacks that 
ever beset a city, more, perhaps, the creature 
of the necessities, the inexorable demands of 
the position, than any American city that has 
ever struggled for eminence ; and yet the forces 
that have thus successfully built up the city are 
far from being exhausted, or even fully com- 
prehended. Humanly speaking, then, there 
is no power on earth that can prevent New 
Orleans from becoming a vast commercial city. 
It will grow In wealth and power, in industry 
and influence, in spite of itself — in spite even 
of the bad fame she has abroad on account of 
climate. The demands of commerce, like the 
demands of necessity, know no law, admit no 
obstacles, overcome all barriers. Back of the 
city to north, to east, to west, lies a vast empire 
of productive wealth with many millions of 
people, all of whom, in a manner, are minis- 
tering to its traffic and wealth. Like fabled 
Cerberus, who guarded the entrance to Pluto's 
realms. New Orleans mounts guard on the 
highway of the Mississippi valley ; and who- 
soever approaches will be challenged, and 
whosoever passes must pay tribute for the priv- 
ilege of egress or ingress through this grand 
gateway, this unrivaled outlet, this natural 
inlet of trade and travel from the heart of the 
American continent to every land and clime and 
sea where the flag of commerce is unfurled. 

" In truth, the view is propitious from every 
standpoint. The city is in a condition of vastly 
improved sanity and health, and has com- 
menced — nay, is far upon the road in a bril- 
liant career of improvement. The motives of 
social and political freedom, fertility of soil, 
salubrity of climate, wealth of agricultural 
resources, facilities for commerce and manu- 
factures, and ease of river and railroad trans- 
portation, are the material advantages which 
invite capitalists, tradesmen and manufacturers 
of every clime and nationality to a home in our 
midst, to a cooperation in the development of 
Its measureless possibilities, and to an enriching 
participation in its prosperity. A live, intelli- 
gent and enterprising people, now fully aroused 
to all the requirements of the age, have posses- 
sion of her multifarious labors, and the day is 
now at hand when many a stately edifice is 
musical with clanging machinery and those 
sounds of diversified industry that quicken the 
pulse of a nation and prolong the life of a 
republic ; while her possibilities, thus fore- 
shadowed, dazzle the mind by their variety and 
magnitude, and leave the calmest and most 
unimpassioned observer quite bewildered in the 
prospect for this magnificent metropolis of the 
New World." 



THE "CRESCENT CITY" — WHY SO CALLED. 

The older portion of the city is built on the 
convex side of a bend of the river, which here 
sweeps around in a northeast, east and south- 
east course. From this location it derives its 
familiar sobriquet of the "Crescent City." 
^Vhether we take it in the garish light of day, 
or under moonlight or starlight vision, no city 
of the New World presents a fairer view than 
New Orleans, the Crescent City of the South. 
Whoever has seen its multiplied charms by day 
will pardon the enthusiasm of the writer who 
described its charms at night and as seen from 
the deck of one of our noble steamers : " The 
mantle of night has settled on the scene, and 
the historic Crescent City, with a myriad of 
gas-jets beaming, seemed, as we approached, 
a picture from fairy -land, instead of a reality. 
Quite romantic and bewildering is the view as 
we round the bend and come onward down the 
stream ; and it did seem that the rolling flood 
of the Patriarch of Waters had merely made 
this graceful curve, as if it longed to look upon 
a spot of so much beauty ere it journeyed on 
in its unceasing travel to the remorseless sea. 
Bending like the curve of a Mussulman's 
cimeter, with each light from the shore re- 
flected from its bosom, the sight was indeed 
Oriental and crescent-like ; and one might 
easily add in imagination the crescent-standard 
battalions of the Grand Sultan, and picture the 
hosts of Islam passing in view. Yet, by its 
shape alone, does our beloved city claim the 
symbolic name of the Mohammedan, and we 
owe no obeisance to Saracenic poetry for the 
suggestion, 

" However, in the progress of its growth up 
stream, the city has of late years so extended 
itself as to fill the hollow of a curve in the 
opposite direction, so that the river front now 
presents an outline somewhat resembling two 
conjoined crescents, or perhaps more properly 
the letter S. This configuration necessarily ren- 
ders the direction of the streets very irregular. ' ' 

The old Spanish Fort, which over a cen- 
tury ago was the stronghold of the early colo- 
nists was erected to protect the mouth of 
St. John's Bayou. Following the windings 
of the stream, at that period, resulted in the 
discovery of the present site of New Orleans. 
What marvelous changes ! Nothing left of the 
old fort but some crumbling walls, at present 
ornamented with huge live-oaks. Wandering 
over these historic grounds, you discover as 
relics of a past lime two dismounted ancient 
cannon, half buried in the grass ; and on the 
side of the vanished fort, among the trees, now 
stands a summer residence, enlarged to accom- 
modate visitors of the newly laidout grounds. 
We are informed that some years ago it was 
a favorite summer resort, with rose gardens, 
orchards and orange groves bri^jht with the 
golden fruit of Hispania. Sailing vessels plied 
on the bayou ready to take the delicious fruit 
to distant marts. This orange grove was totally 
destroyed by the great flood a few years ago ; 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



II 



the estate changed hands several times, until 
the railroad company took charge of it and 
made it the most attractive place of the kind 
in the South. Ascending the great pavilion, 
eighty feet high, just before sunset, a beautiful 
scene is beneath you. You can trace the 
course of the river far below and see the levees 
crowded with steamers and a motley array of 
vessels. Nearer, you can see the city over the 
intervening swamps, with its many steeples and 
stately buildings. Turning toward Lake Pont- 
chartrain, you see its waters until they unite 
with the waves of the Mexican Gulf. Looking 
eastward you can see the lights of West End, 
with its numerous buildings — a rival of Spanish 
Fort ; it was erected shortly after the Spanish 
Fort enterpnse by another railroad company. 
Further on is the bayou, covered with many 
canoes and sailboats gliding as smoothly as 
Venetian gondolas beneath the soft radiance of 
the southern moon. What Italian landscape 
could be more beautiful ? 

THE CRESCENT CITY DIFFERS FROM OTHER 
CITIES IN AMERICA. 

New Orleans is a city of surprises. The 
visitor, during even a brief stay in this remai'k- 
able place, is struck with the greatest contrasts 
in merely walking from one street to another. 
He will pass through thoroughfares in no way 
inferior to those of Paris, Vienna, St. Peters- 
burg, Palermo, Venice or Rome. He will find 
the nervous and restless business life of the 
Yankee in contrast with the " dolce far niente " 
of the Creole ; he will see many interesting 
pictures in the lives of the half-civilized negroes, 
or in the scanty existence of a few Indians ; he 
will meet representatives of every nation in the 
world, and hear languages and dialects ot 
every country. He will soon discover that he 
is in a city demanding a long stay and diligent 
study in order to a clear comprehension of her 
and her wonders. Some European tourist once 
remarked sarcastically, that having seen one 
American city he had seen all; but, without 
doubt, he had never been fortunate enough to 
visit New Orleans or San Francisco. A lengthy 
visit to either of those places would speedily 
disabuse his mind of the error into which he 
had fallen, unless he is a victim to old world 
prejudice. 

A VISIT TO THE FRENCH MARKET. 

The French Market before sunrise is an ideal 
scene of lively traffic particularly interesting to 
the traveler from the North, who has never 
seen anything like it at home. During the 
morning hours of each day these markets are 
veritable beehives of industry. Pretty young 
negresses chat with monsieur and madame, 
who by the expenditure of only a few cents can 
get a day's supply from the generous quantities 
of tropical fruits, such as bananas, oranges, pine- 
apples, etc. IViulatto belles, who call them- 
selves Creoles, may be seen gracefully gliding 
through the crowd — and, in fact, the stranger 
who does not know the difference between an 



octoroon and a Creole might easily be mis- 
taken, for they imitate Creole maimers to per- 
fection ; ladies with their servants, children of 
every color, old men and dandies, flutter along 
this endless line of exhibited merchandise, be- 
tween two of the great market buildings, to 
buy either vegetables, fish, fruit, meat or toilet 
and fancy articles. Every vender is in search 
of a customer, and tries to persuade passers-by 
to bargain with him. On all sides rises a great 
noise of voices chattering in a dozen different 
patois — French, English, Spanish, and the 
guttural negro dialects. Occasionally one of 
those superb, almost faultlessly formed Creole 
ladies, passes through the throng unescorted ; 
she makes her scanty purchases with the same 
grace as in former times, when wealthy, she 
stepped from her carriage to enter one of the 
magnificent jewelry establishments to pur- 
chase precious stones as negligently as she now 
pauses to buy fresh fruit or fish. 

One notices on every hand a profusion of 
flowers, bouquets of freshly culled roses, fra- 
grant orange blossoms, delicate jessamines, 
waxen japonicas and camellias, purple and 
gold and gorgeously hued tropical blossoms — 
for Flora is the divinity of this balmy clime. 
These flowers are truly marvelous, and we 
believe that no other city in the world has 
daily such lavish and wonderful display ; and 
the most unusual and rare blooms are sold at 
so small a sum that one can scarcely credit it. 
Before the intense heat of noon wilts the fruit, 
flowers and vegetables, the jargon of languages 
dies away, the endless procession fades like 
phantasmagoria ; the stalls and booths are 
silent and empty, and the golden sunlight 
streams through the deserted market-place. 

TOPOGRAPHY OF NEW ORLEANS. 

New Orleans, unlike the majority of Amer- 
ican cities, is not laid out in squares, and 
this circumstance alone would prove it to have 
been built by the French. Although a few of 
the streets are straight and some parts of the 
city are built with strict regularity, many of 
the thoroughfares are parallel with the bendsof 
the river or with the once great private estates. 
The oldest and real business part of the city 
has been built into a curve of the Mississippi, 
while the newer parts lie in the direction 
of Lake Pontchartrain. A few bayous and 
canals traverse the city in various direc- 
tions, but the " Grand Canal " of New 
Orleans is the Mississippi River, the father of 
waters. On it alone depends the flourishing 
condition and the future of the metropolis, the 
"to be or not to be" of the Crescent City. 
Those streets next to the river-port are in the 
centre of the business life ; but if you follow 
their windings, you will find yourself in the 
quieter portions of the city, and will finally be 
lost among private residences, alleys and 
gardens. A number of straight avenues cross 
the squares for miles in various directions, con- 
verge and diverge, and lead in some places to 
the river or to the lake, without ever havmg 



12 



THE "-CRESCENT CITY:' 



a real centre. Of the multiplicity of streets 
not a dozen run in the same direction. It 
would have been impossible, and without any 
practical benefit, to have numbered them, as is 
often done in large American cities ; accord- 
ingly they have, in New Orleans, particular 
names, as in European cities, and these names 
have a manifold origin. In the older pans of 
the city, for instance, the names recall the 
memory of the French kingdom ; some of the 
later ones, the Republic and the Empire, as 
Austerlitz and Marengo Streets. Other appella- 
tions belong to the Muses, to demi-gods, fairies 
and Titans. In short, ancient mythology was 
raided in order to supply names for these 
modern American avenues. The "Path of 
Fortune " crosses the Dryades, Elysee, and 
Magnolien Streets, and finally the "Path of 
Melpomene." Columbus finds himself in the 
society of charming demi-goddesses, and the 
French kings are surrounded by the highest 
gods of Olympus. Can one go further in a 
kingdom in adoring royalty ? Our national 
heroes and presidents were carried into the 
neighborhood of all virtues, as Genius, Wis- 
dom, Power, Charity, etc. On the other side 
of the stream are the suburbs of Algiers, Tunis 
and Belleville. A plan of the Crescent City 
must look, without doubt, much nobler with 
such flattering and ostentatious and poetical 
names, than plans of other American cities 
with their plain numbers i, 2, 3, etc. 

CANAL STREET. 

As space will not permit a more detailed 
description of New Orleans, we will at least 
accompany the reader into the most important 
streets. Starting from the Mississippi levee, 
we find ourselves in Canal Street, the principal 
and most beautiful street of the Crescent City, 
despite its less poetical name. It is the worthy 
associate of the great river to whose banks it 
leads ; it is the Mississippi of the streets. In 
New York it is Broadway that shows us the 
whole continent in the space of a few miles, a 
street on whose one end is Europe, and on 
whose other end is America. What Broadway 
is to New York, Canal Street is to New 
Orleans, alike impressive, alike grand, and 
perhaps even more characteristic. We see 
that as soon as we enter the street. It 
is the main artery between the South of the 
Union and the Tropic of the West Indies. 
The manner in which it is laid out, its appear- 
ance, the crowds of carriages and pedestrians, 
the immense and showy shops and stores, 
prove it to be the meeting point of the Anglo- 
Saxon and Franco-Spanish culture, as well 
as the line of meeting between the temperate 
and tropical zones. These physical and 
mental contrasts may be found in this one city 
and more especially in this one street. New 
0"leans is divided into two almost equal por- 
tions by Canal Street, which has a width of 
about seventy feet. Lined on both sides by 
magnificent buildings whose height, number 
of stories and magazines, show the American 



energy, it has also structures whose archi- 
tecture, breezy balconies and romantic verandas 
display the love of the Latin race for ease and 
comfort. Flowers in the windows, tropical 
plants on the balconies — a picture of the 
Spanish or French South ! Large advertise- 
ments, signs painted in glaring colors, windows 
gay with costly exhibitions — a picture of the 
American North. The names which we read 
on the street, the languages in which they are 
written, give another example of the Franco- 
Spanish American Babylon. Long flagstaffs, 
with stars and stripes, reach high over the 
houses. Green shutters and shady roofs of 
canvas are in the balconies ; in the street win- 
dows various sights, now an advertisement, 
now the face of a business man, and farther 
on the dark eyes of a charming Creole beauty. 
This long row of buildings for miles is only 
interrupted by other streets, whose terminus 
is Canal Street. The sidewalks, covered with 
great paving stones, are very wide. In the 
midst of the street, which is somewhat lower 
than the sidewalks, but very well paved, there 
are long rows of shade-trees, and footpaths 
well filled up with sand. In this way the 
space for vehicles is divided into two streets, 
partly separated from the sidewalk and shady 
footpaths, by small open ditches, which are 
covered only at the crossings. These secondary 
streets, still twenty paces in width, are crossed 
by dozens of tracks, and the travel on them, 
by horse and steam-cars, especially at the 
crossing from Charles Street to Canal Street, 
is enormous. Canal Street is in the centre of 
the net of street railways, which have an ex- 
tension of over a hundred miles, and which 
are of great importance on account of the great 
distances. The street-cars are drawn by mules, 
as they can better endure the extreme heat in 
the summer than horses. We might say some- 
thing of Carrollton Avenue and the Esplanade, 
both very handsome streets, used as prome- 
nades and drives by the fashionable and wealthy 
inhabitants of the city, but instead we will take 
a glance at Jackson Square, formerly the ' 'Place 
d'Armes" of the French city. It lies in the 
midst of Frenchtown, and is one of the most 
attractive squares in the Crescent City, with 
its tropical verdure and tall orange and mag- 
nolia trees, whose white blossoms fill the air 
with heavy sweetness. Besides these, bananas, 
shrubbery and flowers of all sorts abound. In 
the centre of the garden is the equestrian 
statue of General Jackson, farther on is the 
Cathedral of St. Louis, with its three tall 
spires, that can be seen long before you reach 
New Orleans. On both sides of the Cathedral 
are two old buildings, used now as court- 
rooms. The park-like garden leads toward the 
Mississippi, and the entire square stands in 
marked contrast with the ancient and homely 
buildings around it in old Frenchtown. 

Another attractive feature of New Orleans is 
the City Park. This would be one of the 
finest parks in America, for nature has done 
much in ornamenting the grounds with 



THE ''STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



13 



majestic live-oaks, festooned with gray Spanish 
moss. At present the park is not opened to 
visitors ; it has been fenced in, and is ratlier a 
cow-pasture than anything else. Near the 
park is a bayou which would make a beautiful 
lakelet if properly cleaned, but the people do 
not patronize these shady retreats as they 
should do, and it is nothing but a home for 
cows and geese. 

Among the various societies of New Orleans 
is the new Louisiana Jockey Club, with about 
300 members. This club has opened a fine 
race-course for the advancement and improve- 
ment of racing and horse-breeding. One of 
the loveliest parks, the property of the club, 
has been supplied with all the necessary build- 
ings for these purposes. Here are given 
delightful promenade concerts, to which 
members only have admission. An invitation 
is a compliment extended only to visitors, and 
the invited stranger may consider himself a 
lucky man, as the elite of the Crescent City 
society assembles there. 

Another society is the Liedertafel, with over 
700 members, the largest private club in the 
city. The members of this society give musical 
and social entertainments, and during the 
carnival season they take a prominent part 
when the mystic Rex issues his proclamation. 
They have fine club-rooms and elegantly fur- 
nished drawing-rooms, in fact every accommo- 
dation for the lady and gentlemen members of 
the club. The New Orleans Philharmonic 
Society has about 100 members. The club is 
not only a literary and musical one, but also 
aims to improve the public taste in art. There 
are elegant rooms for concert and art purposes; 
but Grunewald Hall is used for chorus and 
oratorio singing. This hall is an ornament to 
the city, being of fine architectural proportions 
and having its acoustics as nearly perfect as 
is possible. The ceiling is beautifully frescoed 
and the walls adorned with many valuable 
paintings. The Philharmonic Society not 
only make use of the building, but other 
musical associations, comprising the finest 
talent of the city, give entertainments here, and 
on the evening of Mardi Gras an immense and 
loyal crowd assembles to pay due respect to 
Rex and his queen. 

In this connection we may mention the 
"Carnival Club." The Variety Theatre pre- 
sents, during the progress of the Mardi Gras 
ball, one of the loveliest sights in the Crescent 
City. From floor to ceiling, the parquet, 
dress-circle and galleries are one mass of 
dazzling toilets, for none but ladies are given 
seals. White robes, delicate faces, dark 
sparklini^; eyes, luxurious folds of glossy hair, 
tiny, faultlessly gloved hands — such is the 
vision that a humble spectator of the mascu- 
line gender may see through his opera-glass. 
Delightful music swells on the flower-fragrant 
air ; the tableaux change like pictures seen in 
a kaleidoscope ; the curtain rises, and joyous 
grotesque maskers appear upon the ball-room 
floor ; gradually the ladies and their cavaliers 



leave all parts of the theatre and join the 
dance, and the mystic Rex holds his levee. 

The Yacht Club have a fine pavilion at 
West End, on Lake Pontchartrain, and have 
rules and regulations like the Jockey Club. 
The club regattas are celebrated. Another 
association similar to this is the " St. John 
Rowing Club," that gives festivals with fire- 
works on the lake. Other societies, as rifle 
clubs, turners, secret or charitable associations, 
abound. 

In regard to public buildings, both finished 
and unfinished, New Orleans is second 
to no other city. We might mention the 
Cotton Exchange (the new building), Grune- 
wald Hall, Lilienthal's Art Rooms, St. Louis 
Hotel, the Supreme Court House, the United 
States Branch Mint, the Custom House with 
the Post Office, Jewish Synagogue on Lee 
Place, St. Paul's Church, Trinity, St. Joseph's, 
St. Patrick's, Jesuit Church and College, 
Christ Church, St. Anna's Asylum, Odd 




Fellows' Hall, Marine Hospital, Maison de 
Sante, the University of Louisiana and the 
noblest of all institutions — the Charity Hospital. 
To give a description of prominent business 
houses, or private villas and residences with 
their fairy-like gardens, would make an in- 
teresting volume in itself. But taking leave of 
the Pearl of the South, and casting a lingering 
look of regret at this lovely spot, we cross the 
Mississippi on the Morgan ferry and land in 
Algiers, the depot of the Star and Crescent 
Route. We soon obtain seats in the smoking 
parlor-car, and are off to visit some sugar-cane 
plantations, and to note down all that is worth 
seeing from New Orleans to the city of 
Houston. 'While comfortably smoking in the 
coach we make the acquaintance of a Creole 
planter, whose ancestors, he tells us, were 
among the first colon'sls. What a change in 
one hundred and fifty years! New Orleans 
was then the capital of an empire-colony that 
comprised a territory of over 500 miles along the 
Pacific, 1700 miles along the British domains. 



14 



TOWNS ON THE ROUTE. 



about 1400 miles along " Meschashebi, " the 
P'ather of Waters, and over 700 miles along 
the Mexican Gulf. Louisiana at that time 
was the Western dream of every European 
crown. Two Indian tribes, the Choctaws and 
the Chickasaws, were in a state of constant 
warfare, and the colonists had to struggle for 
a precarious existence under circumstances of 
extremest difficulty. Out of this immense 
territory the finest states were formed, and the 
name Louisiana, belonging originally to an 
immense tract of one and a half million 
square miles, was transferred to a territory of 
only 40,ooD square miles. Louisiana has a 
great future revenue in her cane-sugar produc- 
tion. There are in the state from twelve to 
thirteen hundred sugar-houses, of which nearly 
one thousand are run by steam. It has been 
stated that the sugar district of Louisiana is 
about 13,000 square miles in area, divided into 
nmeteen or twenty parishes and showing the 
largest population in the Mississippi delta. 
Although Northern capitalists have taken 
possession of many old plantations, whose new 
chimneys and clanking machinery destroy the 
ideal landscapes, yet there are many happy 
homes still left in their old-time picturesque- 
ness along Bayou Teche, Bayou Lafourche, 
Bayou Sarah, Baton Rouge, Natshita and 
other places up and down the Mississippi, 
where Creoles and old French settlers "hold 
in mortmain still their old estates." 

Another important part of the state is the 
Red River region. Red River enters Louisiana 
at Shreveport, traverses the state diagonally 
and flows between Natchez and Sarah into the 
Mississippi. This part of Louisiana has at 
present too much water, and is but thinly 
settled. Still cattle in large numbers, various 
products and lumber are brought by steamers 
to New Orleans, and as we cannot give a 
detailed account of this section, we will men- 
tion that only six parishes along Red River are 
adapted for sugar-cane and cotton cultivation, 
while the interior region produces gram of 
every kind. About 9000 square miles wait 
for the agriculturist to open new avenues of 
wealth. Altogether, the southwest of this 
state has yet several millions of acres of ex- 
cellent soil lying untilled. Toward the gulf, 
along the rivers, bayous, lakes, lagoons, are 
gigantic cypresses and other forest trees wait- 
ing for the woodman's axe, and between the 
parishes of St. Mary and Iberia, Vermillion, 
St. Martin and Lafayette (the former home of 
the Attacapas), are at present the best culti- 
vated plantations of Louisiana, girdled by a 
belt several miles wide, containing majestic 
forests with all kinds of useful woods peculiar 
to the South. Farther down, along the gulf, 
stretch the savannas, the home of uncounted 
cattle ; then come prairies yet untouched by 
civilization and but little known, but which 
will soon be opened by enterprising railroad 
companies. A brief sketch of the towns and 
plantations traversed by the Star and Crescent 
Line to Houston will perhaps be interesting. 



Jefferson Parish has an area of 395 square 
miles, with 19,767 acres under cultivation. 
Population, 12,166. Seat of justice, Gretna, 
an old place with evergreen orange groves, 
stately live-oaks, fine gardens and ancient 
houses. In the background is the river and 
the levee, lined with dense woods. The 
Company Canal connects at Jefferson with 
Grand Isle, a watering place. A little steamer 
makes regular trips during the time from May 
to October, for the accommodation of pass- 
engers, and to carry freight. Toward Junction 
are seen fine sugar-cane fields in good condi- 
tion ; now and then one catches a pretty view 
of sugar mills and adjoining buildings through 
pleasant groves. We notice among various 
shrubs along the road, a "fleurdu sureau." 
The white blossoms in clusters are beautiful, 
and the berries make a delicate confection, 
and also wine and vinegar, of which the 
Creoles are very fond. 

Nineteen-Miles-Switch is a small place with 
rice fields in cultivation everywhere. Looking 
over the country one sees the pale green sugar 
fields and waving plains of rice, separated by 
hedges ; forests, looking hazy-blue in the dis- 
tance, and chimneys of sugar-mills on fine 
plantations near at hand. St. Charles Parish 
is next, with an area of 284 square miles ; 
21,177 acres in cultivation, and a population 
of 7,161. The seat of justice is Hahnville. 
St. Charles and Boutte, twenty-four miles 
apart, are passed, and we catch glimpses of 
cottages, gardens, and busy workers in ripen- 
ing fields. A vast amount of land is still un- 
cultivated. The soil of the parish is good, 
and the bottom-land is covered with dense 
woods, containing a great variety of shrubs 
and trees, festooned with superb vines. The 
tourist will be delighted with the lovely scenes, 
Twenty-eight-Miles-Switch is a water-station, 
and is a pretty stopping place, with its clear 
lake covered with snowy lilies, and overhung 
hy moss-covered branches of the live-oak. 
The scenery between Boutte and Mestier is of 
the same character and its charm increases as 
we reach Bayou des Allemandes, in the 
middle of which is a tiny island upon which is 
a picturesque old cabin, hidden by trees of 
richest foliage. The stream is full of cypress 
logs, which are shipped from here to the gulf. 
Between green prairies rimmed with forests, is 
an opening toward the gulf, the verdure con- 
trasting charmingly with the blue skies above. 
Cane-fields, dark forests, low shrubs, prairie 
land, flash past in dazzling variety. Raceland, 
forty miles on, is only a single cottage and 
water-tank. Again come rice, cane and com 
fields, mills, houses and hedges on both sides ; 
sufficient proof, it would seem, of the salubrity 
of the climate and the fertility of the soil. 
The only danger to be apprehended here is the 
occasional inundations, but which will be pre- 
vented in future by proper river engineering. 
At Ewing's, where we met the Houston train, 
we saw a monster alligator swimming in the 
water. He was soon a target for the revolvers 



THE '^STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROL'TE. 



15 



of the passengers, but with the imperturbable 
indifference characteristic of his species, he swam 
placidly along, and soon was out of reach. The 
country here is more elevated, and the planta- 
tions show excellent culture. No doubt from 
the indications, a lich harvest of sweet potatoes 
will be reaped here. If the country were 
properly drained, the soil would be unusually 
fertile, and fruits of all kinds would grow in 
abundance. Lafourche Parish has an area of 
1024 square miles ; acres in cultivation, 44,802 ; 
population, 19,113. Thibodaux is the county 
seat. Lafourche is the next station, fifty-two 
miles, situated on a bayou ; it is a quiet town. 
The bayou has very clear water, is navigable, 
and is a tributary of the Mississippi. The 
levees of this canal are from eight to ten feet 
high and extend to the river ; there is also 
connection by lagoons with Morgan City. 
Between Lafourche and Terrebonne, a dis- 
tance of fifty-five miles, all the good land is 
in cultivation, interspersed with groves of fine 
trees. The Land Reclamation Company is 
digging canals to drain this sect. on, and 
doubtless much valuable land will be gained. 
The bottom-land along the streams is con- 
sidered to be some of the best in the whole 
state. Terrebonne Parish has an area of i8c6 
square miles ; 40,403 aci-es under cultivation, 
and a population of 17,956. Houma is the 
seat of justice. Towards Chacahoula, sixty- 
one miles, we can see cypress and water-oak 
swamps, the resort of alligators, turtles and 
water-snakes. Snow-white cranes stand silently 
on aquatic plants waiting for t'leirprey, and 
beautiful palmettoes, from ten to twenty-five 
feet in height, spread their graceful leaves m 
the damp shade. We find a similar landscape 
en route to TigervlUe, L'Ourse, and Boeuf 
Bayou connecting with Atchafalaya River, 
near Morgan City. This is a place where 
lumber of all kinds is shipped to different 
points of the country. At Romos some plan- 
tations are in sight. Years ago the Acadian 
exiles came to this region from Acadia, cut 
down the cypress forests and, following this 
unnavigable portion of the Bayou Teche, 
settled near its source and began to cultivate the 
ground. Many comfortable houses are seen 
hidden in groves of Pride of India trees, built in 
plain cottage style, weather-boards outside and 
plastered walls within ; in front the inevitable 
veranda. The corrupted French of these 
Acadians is the same that was spoken years ago. 
They marry at an early age, and it is stated 
that girls twelve years of age, and boys a few 
years older, become husband and wife and 
take charge of their own homes. All these 
settlements reach far. beyond the prairies of 
Opelousas. To be sure, these people live in 
the United States, but as to being Americans — 
that is quite another thing ! In these regions 
many lagoons, connecting all these water- 
ways, are known only to these Acadians. 
For hundreds of miles swamps, with all 
their mysterious contents, wait to be traversed 
by man. And what will be the future home 



of industry is now the retreat of the moccasin 
and alligator. From here towards the gulf 
and Mississippi, a distance of over 150 mdes, 
there is nothing but swamps. The country 
around Romos Bayou, a branch of Boeuf 
Bayou, is mostly inhabited by negroes. The 
fields are in good condition and bring good 
crops. At Morgan City, eighty miles further 
on, we cross, on a fine iron bridge, the Atcha- 
falaya River to Berwick Bay, a place cele- 
brated for its excellent oysters. Boeuf Bayou 
and Tedre River are tributuries of this bay, 
and a live trade gives Morgan City the im- 
portance of a large town. 

After passing Pattersonville, farm joins farm, 
and here flows the b2autiful Teche (corrupted 
from Deutsche) for sixty miles, its lovely shores 
in gentle curves. Bartles' Plantation is a little 




town in itself, with its fine buildings, shady 
groves, sugar mills, orchards and good looking 
negroes and negresses. In the fields, not far 
away, are the "quarters," rows of cottages, 
each with a veranda, and all shaded by fine 
trees. St. Mary's Parish, comes next ; seat of 
justice, Franklin ; area, 648 square miles ; acres 
under cultivation, 66,326 ; population, 19,891, 
Bayou Sali shows beautiful forests ; and the 
next place we reach is Franklin, a lovely town 
of 2800 inhabitants. Farther on are Baldwin, 
Sorrel, Jeanerette and New Iberia. It is as if 
we see nothing but one great garden. There 
are fine residences, plantation after plantation, 
bosky woodlands, rolling prairies doited with 
fine stock, corn and sugar in the highest state 
of cultivation. The most beautiful portion of 
fair Louisiana lies along Bayou Teche. Nature 
discloses here all her charms ; and taking pas- 
sage on the steamer that plies on the clear 
water, you are gliding in "the lost Eden," an 
earthly paradise, where life is good because of 
the delicious investing of it by nature with 
everything that is fairest. When you wish to 
see plantations at the height of culture ^lawns 
as fragrant, as clean-shaven, as nobly shaded 



i6 



TOWNS OX THE ROUTE. 



by graceful trees as any sovereign's, then seek 
the Teche country ; it is the gem of Louis- 
iana ; it is the perfection of the South. Thither 
Andry and the exiled Acadians took their mourn- 
ful way more than a century ago, when the 
cruel order of the arrogant English dispersed 
them from their homes ; thither they went, 
threading the swamps and wandering up the 
beautiful Atchafalaya and her lakes, where 

" Water lilies in myriads rocked on the slight undu- 
lations 

Made by the passing oars, and resplendent in beauty 
the lotus 

Lifted her golden crown above the heads of the 
boatmen. 

Faint was the air with the odorous breath of magno- 
lia blossom?. 

And with the heat of noon ; and numberless sylvan 
islands. 

Fragrant and thickly embowered with blossoming 
hedges of roses. 

Near to whose shores they glided along, invited to 
slumber." 

Now. as then, the traveler pushing his way in 
a tiny steamer, or m a shallop or piroque, can 
hear 

" Far off, indistinct, as of wave or wind in the forest. 
Mixed with the whoop of the crane and the roar of 
the grim alligator," 

strange sounds from the dark forests and the 
lonely lands. 

From Berwick's Bay, where the rich fields 
lie trustingly upon the water, strange vnies and 
creepers seeming to caress the waves and bid 
them to be tranquil, ascend the Tedre Bayou and 
lose yourself in the tangled network ot lake 
and lakelet, plain and forest, plantation and 
swamp. By day you shall have the exquisite 
glory of the sun, which, gleaming on the 
seignorial residences, the great white sugar- 
houses with their tall chimneys, the long rows 
of cabins for the laborers, the villas peering 
from orange groves — makes all doubly bright 
and beautifid ; and at evening the moon may 
lend her witchery to swell your admiration and 
surprise. You will drift on by superb knots 
of shrubbery, from which the birds sing 
amorous madrigals ; past floating bridges and 
garden bowers ; along the banks by a ruined 
plantation, one of the wrecks of the war. Now 
seeing in the distance dense cypress swamps, 
bordered by picturesque groupings of oak and 
ash and gum trees; now through that fine region 
extendmg from the entrance of the bayou into 
the parish of Iberia and the town of New Iberia, 
where the beautiful water-willows and iorest 
trees lean downward from the banks to see 
themselves reflected in the stream, and where 
the wheels of passing steamers are compelled 
to brush them rudely as they pass between ; 
where the live-oak spreads its ample foliage 
over some cool dell, upon whose grassy carpet 
strange bright-hued flowers grow rankly ; and 
where suddenly, as though opened by the 
hand of enchantment, a vista of forest glade, 
of happy sylvan retreats, where the moonlight 
makes checker-work of gleam and shadow, 
appears before you. 

is^ew Iberia is the county seat of the parish of 



Iberia. Area of the parish, 536 square miles ; 
acres in cultivation, 49,604; population, 16,686. 
From New Iberia, a distance of 125 miles on 
our way, you can visit the romantic and un- 
touched forests, full of game, along the shores 
of the "Des Lac Peigneur," or go to the well- 
known Orange Island. At New Iberia some 
enterprising gentlemen have done much for 
horse breeding — something very much needed 
in Louisiana. NearCherondon, a village about 
six miles from Sorrel, the Teche makes a great 
bend, and this whole part — including Jean- 
nerette, a lovely town of about 1500 inhabi- 
tants — to Iberia and farther on, is the wealthiest 
part of Louisiana, of which Oliver Plantation, 
with over 1000 acres under fine cultivation, is 
considered to be a model. Mr. Oliver is an 
authority on sugar and fruits in general. 
" Below New Iberia, on Petit Anse Island, you 
may descend into a salt mine sixty feet beneath 
the level of the Gulf of Mexico, through fifty- 
eight feet of solid rock salt, and watch the 
miners picking out the crystal freight, which 
has proved superior to any other salt found in 
the southern market." Toward New Iberia, 
which is on the line of the railroad, fine prairies, 
with excellent cattle feeding on the nutritious 
grass, alternate with highly cultivated cotton 
fields ; sugar-cane fields alternate with gardens 
for miles up to Vermillionville. New Iberia 
has a population of nearly 4000 inhabitants ; 
has cotton-seed mills, sash and saw mills, 
foundries, shingle mills and a large trade in 
lumber. Railroad tracks have been laid to the 
different saw-mills, for greater convenience in 
carrying off the logs, which are generally 
cypress. There are two good schools here, one 
Catholic and th^ other Presbyterian. About 
six miles farther on we come to St. IMartin, on 
Bayou Teche ; the town is a chief shipping 
point, and is situated on a branch of the rail- 
road. We come next to the lovely Spanish 
Lake, with its fine residences, the water as 
clear as crystal and full offish and water-fowl. 
The lake is over three miles wide, and is seven 
miles long. Along the shores are excellent 
orange groves, the moisture protecting them 
from frost. The landscape is lovely, and ash, 
pecan, live-oak, wild cherry, water-oak and 
cypress make beautifully shaded groups of 
green. The climate is very healthy from 
Franclin to Estherwood, and fevers are un- 
known. Toward Broussardville and Royville 
undulating prairies predominate. The country 
has natural drainage, and corn, cotton, sugar- 
cane, fruits and all sorts of berries grow here 
luxuriantly. Almost anything will grow here, 
and the Acadians must have known that, and 
therefore chose it as a settling place. The 
view at sunset is grand, and Spanish Lake 
looks like molten gold. St. Martin's Parish 
has 648 square miles, of which 39,876 acres are 
under cultivation. Lafayette Parish has an 
area of 262 square miles, of which 62,704 
acres are being tilled. The population is 
13,236. Between Rayne, 159 miles from New 
Orleans, and \'ermillionville, the county seat of 



THE ''STAR AXD CRESCENT" AND '-SLNSET" ROUTE. 




SOUR LAKE — HARDIN COUNTY. 



iS 



TOWN'S ON THE ROUTE. 



Lafayette Parish, everything shows the indus- 
trious character of the people. Rayne is quite 
a town, has good stores and neat cottages. 
You see farms on all sides with well stocked 
cattle-pens and very fine horses; cattle ponds 
supply the stock with an abundance of good 
water. The soil is chocolate in color, and well 
adapted to the raising of sweet potatoes. St. 
Landry Parish has an area of 2276 square 
miles, and an area of 137,370 acres under cul- 
tivation ; population, 40,002 ; county seat, 
Opelousas. This is one of the largest parishes 
in Louisiana. The cattle are in the best con- 
dition, and near Estherwood you will find 
superior grass, comfortable farms on the prairies, 
and corn, cotton, and even sugar-cane in suc- 
cessful cultivation. Farther west we come to 
boundless prairies with large herds of cattle 
grazing on them. Mermentau River Station, 
179 miles from New Orleans, can boast of a 
navigable stream ; along its shores are fine 
farms and beautiful trees. Small sailing vessels 
and boats are on the river, and a ferry-boat 
conveys to the other side, which makes here a 
sharp bend. Cattle-pens tell of cattle-raising 
and stock farms, and the live-oaks grow to an 
enormous height. Welsh, also a shippmg 
station for cattle, has cattle-pens, some few 
stores, a fine station house ; many horses and 



colts, cattle, hogs, etc., roam over the prairies, 
which are bordered with dense forests. Parish 
Calcasieu, with Lake Charles as county seat, is 
217 miles from New Orleans, with an area of 
3400 square miles, but only 14,003 acres under 
cultivation, and a population of 12,483 inhabi- 
tants. The lake is strangely beautiful, and on 
moonlight nights, with the silvery light scarce 
penetrating the branches of the gigantic moss- 
draped cypresses — standing "like Druids of 
old, gray, indistinct in the twilight " — the scene 
is fantastic and impressive beyond description. 
The lake is the resort of the blue-heron and 
the crane, and the home of the alligator. 
Your boat crushes pale water-lilies and gro- 
tesquely lovely aquatic plants; your oars startle 
fish that glide in the shallows along the shore. 
Schooners and other vessels spread their sails 
on these placid waters ; small fishing craft dart 
on the surface of the lake, scarce disturbing the 
slumbers of some monster, black and scaly, 
sunning himself in a spot fit for a fairy revel. 
At night, when naught is heard but the sough 
of the wind in the gloomy cypresses, or the 
faint wash of ripples on the shore, camp-fires 
gleam like jack-o'-lanterns here and there in 
the darkness, and the hunter stretches himself 
in the dancing light and dreams of the weird 
beauty of the moonlit lake. 




THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 



19 



TEXAS 



THE outlet of Lake Charles connects with the 
gulf, and the lake has the largest lumber 
trade in the state. The lumber, often seen 
floatmg in rafts of logs, is shipped to the gulf. 
Swamps extend to the gulf and partly to the 
Sabine River, which latter stream we cross in 
entering Texas. The Sabine River forms part of 
the eastern boundary, and theNeches Rivercon- 
stitiites the western and southwestern boundary. 
Orange County has an area of 5cx» square miles, 
and is about equally divided into prairie and 
timber land. The soil is very rich ; the prin- 
cipal crops are cotton, sugar-cane and vege- 
tables. The soil yields two crops a year, and 
peaches, oranges, figs and plums have a luxu- 
riant growth. Yellow pine and cypress seem 
to be inexhaustible along the river, and are of 
the best quality. Of Orange City very litde is 
known, but it is an enterprising place, and has 
a great future. In regard to its shingle fac- 
tories, its lumber trade, and its saw-mills lighted 
by electric lights, it certainly ranks first Li the 
state. The Sabine River is navigable, and 
Sabine Pass is destined to become a great 
harbor. The city is beautifully planned, and 
is second to no other in Texas in regard to 
its gardens, orange groves and tropical fruit 
growth. It is increasing rapidly both in wealth 
and population (now about 3000). Sabine 
Lake, ten miles below the city, is about twenty- 
five miles long and ten miles wide ; is navigable 
and connects with the gulf. 

The next county that we traverse is Jefferson, 
south of Hard n County, with an area of about 
900 square miles, and a population of about 
3000 inhabitants. The larger portion is prairie, 
and the rest of the land is covered with a great 
variety of timber, as oak, hickory, pine, cypress, 
magnolia, live-oak, etc., finely watered by the 
Neches River and some of its tributaries, with 
the well known Taylor and Pine Island bayous. 
The county seat is Beaumont, on the Neches 
River, the present population of which is 1500 
inhabitants. The town will certainly increase, 
as the railroad is to be built to vSabine Pass ; it 
is even now in a very flourishing condition. 
The staple productions of the county are cot- 
ton, corn, rice, vegetables of all kinds. Stock 
raising is an industry that is on the increase. 
The prairie land is rich, and the climate, 
although warm, is agreeable on account of the 
breezes that blow from the gulf. 

We now enter Hardin County, about three 
miles from Sour Lake Station, and a distance 
of about nine miles from the lakes themselves, 
if you travel by stage. Hardin is situated in 
the southeastern portion of Texas ; has an area 



of about goo square miles, and about 2000 
inhabitants. It is comprised within the heavy 
timber belt of eastern Texas, and only one- 
tenth of its area is prairie land. The largest 
portion of the timber is a very fine quality of 
yellow pine, but you will also find a great 
variety of oak, hickory, beech, wahiut, holly, 
etc. ; the timber is valuable because it can be 
floated to saw -mills in Beaumont. The chief 
products of the county are corn, sugar-cane, 
cotton, peas, sweet and Irish potatoes; vege- 
tables could be raised in large quantities, and 
fruits of every kind. The climate is fine on 
account of the gulf breezes. There is an 
abundant supply of water from clear running 
streams and creeks tributary to the Neches 
River, which are of sufficient volume to float 
the heaviest timber. But the most valuable 
and most interesting feature of Hardin County 
is Sour Lake. The surroundings of this won- 
derful lake have never been improved until 
the present enterprising proprietor, Mr. Willis, 
took charge of the place. It is his intention to 
puljlish in a very short time an illustrated 
pamphlet that will treat exclusively of Sour 
Lake, and for this purpose the ready pen of 
the well-known editor, Mr. Jack Redmond, 
has been secured, and the brochure will be 
highly interesting. The area of the lake is 
somewhat over two acres, the water is sul- 
phurous, aluminous and ferruginous, and is 
used for bathing purposes as well as drinking. 
It is regarded as a specific for rheumatism and 
cutaneous diseases. For scrofula, skin diseases 
of any description, it is a complete cure, and 
will prove to be more beneficial than even the 
celebrated Hot Springs, Las Vegas, or springs 
of equal renown. There is an oil that rises 
upon the surface of the waters at Sour Lake 
that is possessed of wonderful curative proper- 
ties, and it has been demonstrated in many 
cases that it clears and beautifies the com- 
plexion as nothing has ever done before. It 
leaves upon the face the unmistakable glow of 
health, which can never be successfully imitated 
by cosmetics. So far, it has been discovered 
by careful analyses that these waters show 
about twenty-seven difierent ingredients ; and 
the experiments durhig a period of forty years 
are sufficient to prove that, with a few exceptions, 
among which is consumption, the Sour Lake 
water will cure every disease that flesh is heir to. 
In the immediate vicinity of the lake are numer- 
ous wells ( at present about fi fteen ) especially used 
for either drinking or bathing purposes, accord- 
ing to the directions of attending physicians 
who have been at the lake for years. We 



20 



THE CITY OF HOUSTON. 



give the analysis of one gallon of the water, 
made by E. L. Wayne, of Cincinnati, July 14, 
1877 : 



Free sulphuric acid, . 


■ 47-25grs 


Sulphate of iron, . 


6 . 92 " 


Sulphate of lime, 


. 9.90 " 


Magnesia, 


4.20 " 


Alumina, . 


• 7-35 " 


Organic matter. 


1.23 " 



As it has been stated before, there has been 
made no complete chemical analysis of all the 
thirteen or fifteen distinct and separate com- 
binations now used, and the distinguished and 
learned Professor Streeruwitz has been engaged 
to make an analysis of all of them during the 
coming season. After an agreeable drive in 
a comfortable conveyance over prairie and 
through a lovely forest we pass through Liberty 
County, one of the southeastern counties of 
Texas, with about iioo square miles and con- 
taining about 5000 inhabitants. The greater 
part of this region is level country ; over three- 
fifths is prairie land and the remainder is well 
timbered, the trees being of the same kinds as 
those of Hardin County. The soil of Liberty 
County is very fertile, and is especially adapted 
to the cultivation of sugar-cane, cotton, corn, 
rice, potatoes, etc. The county is about 200 
feet above the gulf, and the light breezes from 
the ocean make the climate very delightful. 
The town of Liberty is a thriving one, with 
about 600 inhabitants, and is situated on the 
beautiful and navigable Trinity. The railroad 
traverses the entire county. After passing 
Crosby we cross the San Jacinto River, in 
Harris County, and reach Houston, the great 
railroad centre of Texas. 

HOUSTON. 

From various statistical and other sources of 
information we quote some facts most interest- 
ing to the tourist, who will no doubt spend a 
day or two in a city whose citizens always dis- 
tinguish themselves by a cordial hospitality not 
often equaled elsewhere. 

The prominent commercial advantages of 
this city rank it among the leading business 
places in the Lone Star State. Houston, 
situated in Harris County fifty miles from the 
coast, is at the head of navigation on the Buffalo 
Bayou, and is reached by tide water from the 
gulf. 

Formerly a line of steamboats plied regularly 
between this point and Galveston ; now, how- 
ever, Clinton, a small place six miles below, is 
the nearest landing for steamers, it being the 
landing place for Alorgan's gulf steamers. It 
is believed, with reason, that governmental 
appropriations will soon make this short chan- 
nel navigable for the largest vessels ; and this, 
with the dozen railroads centreing here, will 
make Houston the commanding centre of ti-ade, 
transportation and commerce. 

It was founded in 1836 by the Aliens, but 
has now a population of about 25,000 souls, 
with a taxable property of over $7,000,000. It 



is situated at the western verge of the great 
timber belt of eastern Texas, which stretches 
from Arkansas to the gulf coast, and on the 
eastern hmit of the great prairies of Texas, 
which extend to the Rio Grande and New 
Mexico. It is on the direct line between New 
Orleans, the metropolis of the South, and San 
Francisco, the great business centre of the 
Pacific slope. New life, new ambition, new 
strength and energy are coursing the arteries 
of city government. The finest school-houses 
and the best system of public schools in the 
state have already resulted. A handsome 
court house, electric light system, finely paved 
streets, and the largest hotel in the state are 
results soon to be realized. 

Among the numerous societies the Lyceum, 
a literary institution, may be mentioned as the 
leading one, and may be termed a conservatory 
of music and literature ; it has done much to 
improve the taste for the fine arts. During 
the past season it gave a series of most interest- 
ing and instructive entertainments. By the 
generous patronage of the public the directors 
and members have been very much encouraged. 

There are many other organizations, suck 
as Masons, Odd Fellows, Good Templars, 
Young Men's Christian Association, Knights 
of Pythias, Heptasophs, Knights of Honor, 
Young Ladies' Benevolent Association, Inde- 
pendent Order B'nai Brith, Volksfest Asso- 
ciation, Turn Verein, Deutsch Gesellschaft, 
Orchestral Glee Club, Agricultural, Mechan- 
ical and Blood Stock Association, Horticultural 
and Pomological Association ; Houston Light, 
the first military organization in the state ; 
Houston Press Club ; six newspapers ; several 
public parks, prominently the State Fair 
Grounds and Driving Park, Emancipation 
Grounds, Brashear Park, Tivoli Garden and 
Merkel's Grove. All of which go to prove 
that Houston is second to no city in enterprise 
and progress. 

Besides the above mentioned there are fifteen 
or more corporations, viz. : Texas Express Co., 
Pacific Express Co., Houston Direct Naviga- 
tion Co., Buffalo Bayou Ship Channel Co., 
City Transfer Co., Texas Immigration Asso- 
ciation, Houston Insurance Co., City Street 
Railway Co., Houston Gas Light Co., Cot- 
ton Exchange and Board of Trade, Yoimg 
Men's Real Estate and Building Association, 
Railroad Real Estate and Savings Associa- 
tion, Buffalo Compress Co., Odd Fellows' 
Building and Exchange Co., Houston Com- 
press Co., Grain Elevating Co., Cotton Mills 
Co., Houston Flour Mills Co., People's Press 
Co., Volksfest Association, and a few others. 

Hotel accommodations now are equal to any 
city of the same size, and before winter they 
will be equal to cities of much larger popula- 
tion. The new Capitol Hotel has all of the 
latest improvements of to-day, and hasn't a 
superior, in convenience and beauty, in the 
South. It is fifty rooms larger than the larg- 
est hotel in the state, and probably has more 
exterior exposure than any hotel of its size. 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



21 



The health of this city is also most remark- 
able. Official statistics show that the death 
rate is less than that of many cities that are 
considered the healthiest in the land. 

In conclusion, one other fact may be men- 
tioned, viz.: that some of the finest stores and 
some of the finest residences in the state are 
now in course of construction here. 

The ^\■orld is beginning to learn something of 
the fair land which the adventurous French- 
men of the seventeenth century overran, only 
to have it wrested from them by the cunning 
•and intrigue of the Spaniard, in which the 
Franciscan friars toiled, proselyting Indians, 
and building massive garrison missions ; which 
Aaron Burr "dreamed of as his empire of the 
southwest," and into which the republican 
army of the North marched, giving presage of 
future American domination. The dread pirates 
•of the gulf made the islands of the Texan 
coast their retreats and strongholds ; Austin 
and his brave fellow-colonists rescued Texas 
from the suicidal policy of the Mexican govern- 
ment ; the yomiger Austin accepted it as his 
patrimony, and elevated it from the degraded 
and useless condition in which the provincial 
governors held it ; it spurned from its side its 
fellow -slave, Coahuila, and broke its own 
shackles, throwing them in the Mexican tyrant 
•Guerrero's face ; it nourished a small liut noble 
band of mighty men, who made the names 
•of San Felipe, of Goliad, of the Alamo, of 
Washington, of San Jacinto, immortal. It 
crushed the might of Santa Anna, the 
Napoleon of the West ; it wrested its freedom 
from the hard hands of an unforgiving foe, 
■and maintained it as an isolated republic, com- 
manding the sympathy and respect of the 
world ; it placed the names of Houston, of 
Travis, of Fannin, of Bowie, of Milam, of 
Crockett upon the roll of American heroes and 
faithful soldiers, and brought to the United 
States a marriage gift of two hundred and 
thirty-seven thousand square miles of fertile 
land. 

This gigantic southwestern commonwealth, 
which tan nourish a population of fifty 
millions, whose climate is as charming as that 
of Italy ; whose roses bloom, whose birds sing 
all winter long ; whose soil can bring forth all 
the fruits of the earth, and whose noble coast- 
line is broken by rivers which have wandered 
two thousand miles in and out among the 
Texan mountains and plains^is a region 
of strange contrasts in peoples and places. 
You step from the civilization of the rail- 
way junction in Denison to the civilization of 
Mexico of the seventeenth centmy in certain 
sections of San Antonio ; you find black, sticky 
land in northern Texas, incomparably fertile ; 
and extensive plains which give the cattle abun- 
dant living along the great stretches between the 
San Antonio and the Rio Grande. You may 
ride in one day from odorous, moss-grown 
forests, where everything is of tropic full- 
ness, into a section where the mesquite and 
chaparral dot the gaunt prairie here and there ; 



or from the sea-loving population of Galveston, 
and from her thirty-mile beach, to peoples who 
have never seen a mast or a wave, and whose 
main idea of water is that it is something diffi- 
cult to find and agreeable to taste if one is 
exceedingly thirsty. 

The state has been much and unduly 
maligned in many respects ; has been made a 
by-word and reproach, whereas it should be a 
glory and a boast. It has been guilty of the 
imperfections of a frontier community, but 
has rapidly thrown the majority of them aside, 
even while the outer world supposed it growing 
more and more away from what it should be. 
Like some strange, unknown fruit, it has ripen- 
ed in the obscurity of its rind, until, bursting 
its covering, it stands disclosed as something 
of passing sweetness, whereas all men had 
willingly believed it bitter and nauseous. Texas 
has suffered much odious criticism at the hands 
of people who knew very little of its actual 
condition ; border tales have been magnified 
into generalities ; the people of the North and 




^""^^SL. 



of Europe have been told that the native 
Texan was a walking armament, and that his 
only argument was a pistol-shot or the thrust of 
a bowie-knife. The Texan has been paraded 
on the English and French stages as a maudlin 
ruffian who only became sober in savagery, 
and the vulgar gossipings of insincere scribes 
have been allowed to prejudice hundreds of 
thousands of people. Now that the state is 
bound closer than ever before to the United 
States by ii-on bands ; now that, under good 
management and with excellent enterprise, it 
is assuming its proper place, the truth should 
be told. Of course, it would be necessary to 
say some disagreeable things ; it would even 
be just to make severe strictures upon certain 
people and classes of people ; but it would not 
be necessary to condemn the state wholesale, 
and to write of it in a hostile spirit. The first 
impression to be corrected — a very foolish ar.d 
inexcusably narrow One, which has, neverthe- 
less, taken strong hold upon the popular mind 
— is, that travel in Texas, for various indefi- 
nite reasons, is everywhere unsafe. Nothing 



22 



TEXAS AS IT IS. 



could be more erroneous. There is only one 
section where the least clanger may be appre- 
hended, and that is vaguely known as the 
"Indian country. ' ' Hostile Comanches,Lipans, 
or predatory Kickapoos might rob you of your 
cherished scalp if you ventured into theii- 
clutches ; but in less than three years they 
will have vanished before the locomotive, or, 
possibly before the legions of Uncle Sam, who 
is said to be possessed of a strange mania for 
removing his frontier quite back to the moun- 
tains of Mexico. Indeed, this apprehension 
with regard to safety for life and property in 
Texas is all the more inexplicable from the very 
fact that the great mass of the citizens of the 
state were interested to maintain law and 
order, and fought the outlaws who fomid their 
way among them with bitter persistence. It 
is true that during, and for two years after the 
war, things were in a lamentable condi- 
tion. Outlaws and murderers infested the 
high-roads, robbed remote hamlets, and 
enacted jail deliveries ; there were a thou- 
sand murders per year within the state 
limits ; but at the end of the two years the 
reconstruction government had got well at 
work, and annihilated the murderers and 
robbers. It was a noteworthy fact, too, that the 
people then murdered were mainly the fellows 
of the very ruffians who murdered them ; shot 
down in drunken broils or stabbed in conse- 
quence of some thievish quarrels. Of coiu-se, 
innocent people were plundered and killed ; 
but then, as now, most of the men who "died 
with their boots on" were professional scoimr 
drels of whom the world was well rid. 

The correct verdict, however, with regard to 
the present condition of Texas may be summed 
up as follows ; 

"A commonwealth of unlimited resources, 
with an unrivaled climate, inhabited by a 
brave, impulsive, usually courteous people, 
who are anxious for the advent of others to 
share the state's advantages with them ; who 
are by no means especially bitter on account of 
the results of the war ; who comprise all grades 
of society, from the polished and accomplished 
scholar, ambassador, and man of large means, 
to the rough, unkempt, semi-barbaric tiller of 
the soil or herder of cattle, who is content with 
bitter coffee and coarse pork for his sustenance, 
and with a low cabin, surrounded by a scraggy 
rail-fence, for his home. 

" The more ambitious and cultured of the 
native Texans have cordially joined with the 
newly-come Northerners and Europeans in 
making improvements, in toning up society in 
some places, toning it down in others ; in en- 
deavoring to compass wise legislation with 
regard to the distribution of lands, and the 
complete control of even the remote sections 
of the state by the usual machinery of coiuts 
and officials ; and the binding together and 
consolidation of the interests of the various 
sections by the rapid increase of railway lines." 

The above is the picture presented to the 
able writer of that day as he viewed Texas 



then, while the contents of this brief volume 
we have endeavored to make a true picture of 
that section to-day penetrated by the Sunset 
Route and its numerous branches. 

HARRIS COUNTY. 

One of the most important coimties in the 
Lone Star State, with an area of 1832 
square miles, and with a population of nearly 
30,000 ; situated upon the thirtieth parallel of 
latitude and between the eighteenth and nine- 
teenth degrees of longitude west from Wash- 
ington. With about three-fourths prairie-land, 
the remainder of the county is covered with 
a heavy growth of timber along the margins 
of streams, mostly confined to the eastern por- 
tion of the county. As ten lines of different 
railroads cross this county, and it has besides 
a commmiication by water from Houston to 
Galveston, it offers to the public such facilities of 
transportation as are rarely found . The prairies 
of Harris County, beautifully undulated, are 
for the most part devoted to stock-raising ; 
besides, the soils are of considerable variety, 
(the black, waxy and sandy loam predomi- 
nating), and can be tilled for generations with- 
out deterioration, being well adapted to the 
growing of cotton, cane, oats, vegetables in 
great variety and fruit in abundance. The 
value of all the principal productions increases 
with the extraordinary Convenience to a good 
market, chiefly to Houston, the county seat, 
with a population of about 25,000, and at 
which no less than ten raihoads centre. Hous- 
ton, besides being the centre of all railroads in 
Texas, is beautifully encircled with groves of 
live-oaks and stately pines ; the whole city is 
in fact a garden, and roses and other sweet 
daughters of Plora never cease blooming 
summer and winter. The Buffalo Bayou, 
fringed with magnohas, cypresses of gigantic 
size festooned with mustang grape and other 
vines, with trees and shrubs of every descrip- 
tion bordering its shores, affords facilities for 
boating rarely found elsewhere. The drives 
toward Harrisburg, early in the spring, along 
the bayou, through never-ending natural parks, 
containing trees covered with vines and draped 
with Spanish moss, is truly a delightful 
pleasure. The whole atmosphere is perfumed 
by the magnoHa blossoms ; Spanish-daggers 
and palmettoes deeply shadow the right and 
left of the road ; all around are the woods, a 
wonderful mass of verdure ; and the beholder, 
enraptiued by the sweet song of the mocking- 
bird, will find no more beautiful landscape in 
America. Besides Houston, there are several 
progressive towns in the county, among which 
we mention Peirce Junction, ten miles from 
Houston, which is the original eastern terminus 
of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio 
Railway, and is an important live-stock ship- 
ping point. Spring Station is another thriv- 
ing place, convenient for lumber shipment ; 
so also Westfield, a small town north of Hous- 
ton, and several others. The county is well 
watered by a number of streams, among them 



THE '^STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AND '^ SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



23 




24 



FORT BEND AND WHARTON COUNTIES. 



the San Jacinto River, Cypress Creek, Spring 
Creek and others. 

FORT BEND COUNTY. 

The noble Brazos River winds its yellow 
waters between beautifully timbered shores, 
almost doubling its length by its crooked way 
in this county. It is very interesting to quote 
Mr. W. P. Ouiggs' remarks in regard to the 
wonderful soil of tlie heavily timbered bottom 
land, about six miles in breadth. He has been 
for years one of the largest sugar planters in 
this section. He says, " I consider the Brazos 
and Oyster Creek lands to be the best in the 
state. They produce abundantly and are very 
easy to cultivate. 

"The land is a rich, reddish, alluvial soil, 
mixed with small shell. The soil is so deep 
that I have seen wells dug thirty feet, that at 
the bottom being as that on the top. The 
chief products are corn, cotton, sugar-cane, 
sweet and Irish potatoes. 

"The average yield of corn is per acre from 
fifty to seventy bushels ; of cotton, from one to 
two bales ; of sugar, fifteen hundred pounds 
and ninety gallons of molasses ; of sweet 
potatoes, from two hundred to three hundred 
bushels ; peaches are a safe and abundant 
crop ; plums and grapes flourish luxuriantly. 
There is an abundance of timber for all pur- 
poses, ash, oak, elm, box-elder, hackberry and 
wild peach. The depth of timber from the 
river to the prairie will vary from three to five 
miles. The prairie furnishes plenty of fine 
grasses for summer pasturage, while the timber 
bottom lands afford protection from the ' North- 
ers ' and bad weather, with plenty of grass all 
the winter. I have been planting for six years, 
and I make this statement from actual experi- 
ence. I have never found any difficulty in 
procuring all the labor I wanted, and have 
taken off four hundred bales of cotton, two 
hundred hogsheads of sugar, and corn without 
limit. Corn has ready sale at fifty cents." 

The beautiful prairies, interspersed with 
lovely groves, dotted with herds of cattle, 
almost hidden in the ever-living grass, have 
to be seen and traversed that one may com- 
prehend the beauty, and breathe the exhilar- 
ating air of an ocean of flowers. 

Oyster Creek, a slowly running stream of a 
dark color, influenced by the tides of the gulf 
only during dry weather, runs nearly parallel 
with the Brazos. Very extensive cane-brakes, 
existing formerly on its banks, are now partly 
desti'oyed by cattle and by cultivation of the 
soil by industrious colonists, now rich and inde- 
pendent citizens. Richmond, thirty -four miles 
fi-om Houston, is the county seat of Fort Bend, 
and is situated on the west bank of the Brazos. 
It has two railways, the Galveston, Harrisburg 
and San Antonio, and the Gulf, Colorado and 
Santa Fe. The county is north of Brazoria 
and south of Harris coimties, in longitude 
eighteen and nineteen degrees west, and 
in latitude twenty -four and thirty degrees north. 
Area, 889 square miles, and population about 



10,000. The health of this county, so near the 
gulf coast, is excellent, the inhabitants are re- 
fined, intelhgent and industrious. In regard to 
the products that were exhibited at the pomo- 
logical fair held at Houston in 1878, they 
were unexcelled, comprising sugar-cane, corn, 
cotton, fruits and melons of every kind, im- 
mense in size and excellent in quality. The 
most wonderful articles on exhibition were 
thirty-six different varieties of native nutritious 
grasses ; fifty-four varieties of timber cut from 
the forests of the county ; the finest and best 
honey, and specimens of rock and different 
soils. The railroad next traverses a portion 
of the northern section of 

WHARTON COUNTY. 

South of Austin County and north of Mata- 
gorda, this county lies between the twenty- 
ninth and thirtieth degrees of north latitude, 
and on the nineteenth degree of west longi- 
tude, with an area of 900 square miles, 
and a population of about 5000, mostly 
white. It is watered by the Colorado flowing 
through its centre, with Old Caney and East 
and West Bernard Rivers. Peach, Middle 
Bernard, Lone Star, East, West and Middle 
iSIustang, Pin Oak, Golden Rod, Sandy, Jones, 
Blue and Palocois Creeks, traversing every 
section of the comity, makes it the best watered 
along the Sunset Route, and therefore not 
surpassed in productions by any other portion 
of our state. The soil is the rich alluvial, and 
the coimty is divided by lovely valleys, well 
timbered, and prairie lands awaiting the culti- 
vator; for as yet only a small part of the county 
is imder cultivation. The timbered portion 
abounds, like Fort Bend County, in every 
variety of oak, cypress, Cottonwood, ash, 
pecan, elm, etc. The crops are principally 
cotton, corn, sugar-cane ; and it is stated that 
the corn is better than com raised in the East 
or North. Cattle and other stock are in ex- 
cellent condition both winter and summer, as 
they find grass, other provender and water 
during all seasons. Horses are herded, and it 
is estimated that from five to six thousand are 
in the best condition, grazing on the prairies 
with many thousands of Texas cattle. The 
principal towns of Wharton County are Whar- 
ton, the county seat, situated on the Colorado 
River, with a population of about 600, and 
New Philadelphia, a splendid location recently 
laid out by Pennsylvanians, sixty-three miles 
from Houston. This place is growing rapidly, 
and yet there is much room for immigrants 
who desire a home for themselves and children. 
Eagle Lake is a favorite camping place. It is 
one of those lovely spots which never fail to 
attract the tourist and those who seek seclusion 
from the fatigue of city life. The hunter, 
early in the morning, is sure to find ducks, 
geese of various kinds, the plover, the snipe 
and curlew, or the sand-hill crane and tlie 
trumpeter crane ; the latter is a beautiful bird, 
standing quite six feet high, with white plum- 
age relieved by black wings and back. The 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SCNSET" ROUTE. 



25 



angler is sure to get a bite of a black bass 
(trout), white perch, cattish, or a buftalo ; the 
latter, similar to the European carp, has a very 
fine flavor. The botanist or florist will find 
water roses and water lilies with other beauti- 
ful specimens of aquatic plants peculiar to this 
lake only. Unimproved lands, mostly owned 
"by some speculators, are sold from one to ten 
dollars per acre, while cultivated farms 
range from fifteen to forty dollars per 
acre. Some new settlers, about four to 
•five years ago, have, in this locality and 
about Schulenburg, founded colonies which 
are improving wonderfully ; most of them are 
composed of Germans. May they prosper ! 

COLORADO COUNTY. 

This county, traversed by the Colorado 
River and the Galveston, Harrisburg and San 
Antonio Railway, has a splendid reputation in 
regard to its free school system, as the citizens 
take a warm interest m educational matters. 
They have built fine school-houses, etc., and 
although anxious and generous to promote 
general welfare, they are fi-ee from debt— a 
sure index to prosperity. On the west bank 
of the Colorado River is situated Columbus, 
the county seat, eighty-six miles from Houston. 
This city is one of the most charming along 
the line. Along all the streets fine rows of 
shade trees of different varieties are planted, 
and the taste formerly displayed by the first 
settlers in preserving the exceptionally fine live- 
oaks has given this lovely place a poetically 
romantic appearance, and they may justly take 
pride in having the finest specimens of live- 
oaks in the state. Strangers passing through 
the city admire these grand old trees. Draped 
with the gray Spanish moss, during moonlight 
evenings they are enchantingly beautiful in 
eftect and form— the more so when the gentle 
gulf breeze, with which they are always 
favored, gracefully swings the long, waving, 
ghost-like hair of these kings of the former 
forests on the Colorado River. 

In regard to health, Columbus is a favored 
spot on earth, as the nights during summer 
are made cool and pleasant by a regular breeze 
from the gulf. Persons whose constitutions 
are worn out are there restored to new life and 
happiness ; even cases of consumption have 
been cm-ed, and patients have regained perfect 
health. As the country throughout the county 
is undulating, and as the rivers and creeks are 
running toward the gulf, no pools of stagnant 
water can collect to produce miasma. 

' Although there is a jiredominance of prairie 
land, there is enough timber for fuel, building 
and fencing purposes, such as post-oak, water- 
oak, burr-oak, live-oak, black-jack, hickory, 
pecan, cypress, elm, ash, wahuit, cottonwood, 
willow, sycamore, etc. The bottom lands are 
excellently adapted for the cultivation of corn, 
cotton, all kinds of grain, fruits and vegetables. 
Besides the Colorado River, the county is 
watered by the Navidad River, Harvey's, 
Cummins, Skull and Sandv Creeks. 



FAYETTE COUNTY. 

It is located in longitude 20 degrees west and 
latitude 30 degrees north. The Sunset Route 
passes through this county, also the Colorado 
River, with numerous creeks traversing the 
same, which water-courses afford an inexhaust- 
ible supply of water for all purposes. The 
names of these creeks are : Peach, Live Oak, 
Pin Oak, Buckner, Barton, Cedar, East and 
West Navidad, Mulberry, Rocky, Middle, 
Williams, Criswell, Babbs, Jones, Cedar No. 2, 
Clear, High Hill, Owl, Cummins and Haw 
Creeks. This county was organized 1838, and 
has an area of 975 square miles. About one- 
half of this county is tillable prairie, one-fourth 
tillable timber land, and one-fourth first-class 
timber land. The surface of the county is 
rolling, and, in regard to landscape scenery, a 




7: c^; 



paradise for artists who are in search of the 
picturesque. The whole country is alive with 
stock, cattle, sheep, hogs, goats, mules, horses 
— found along the creeks or traversing the 
prairies that are ornamented with beautiful 
shrubs and groups of trees. The two lakes, 
Primms and Crownover, are the homes of all 
kinds of water-fowls, fishes, turtles, etc. 

The timber is principally post-oak, but there 
is along the creeks and lakes a limited variety of 
other kinds. The soil is waxy, black and sandy 
loam ; it is very productive and bears the 
highest cultivation. The excellent facilities for 
transportation, still increased by another pro- 
posed railway, adds considerably to the value of 
the land, and, considering all advantages, ren- 
ders this county one of the most desirable in our 
state. It is attracting a large immigration and 
has some of the richest and finest settlements 
of this state — due to the energetic, intelligent 
and industrious inhabitants. The climate is 
mild and healthy ; the principal agricultural 
productions are cotton and corn. The stock- 
raising interest of this county is of importance, 
and statistics prove that over 70,000 of various 
kinds of domestic animals are registered. The 
county has an intelligent population of about 
30,000. There are ninety-eight schools, fifty 
churches, six Masonic lodges, and various other 
societies. The Galveston, Harrisburg and San 



26 



GONZALES AND CALDWELL COUNTLES. 



Aiitonio Railway passes through some of the 
most important cities of this comity, viz.: 
Borden, Weimar, Schulenburg and Flatonia. 
La Grange, the comity seat, with a popula- 
tion of over 3000, is connected by a branch 
railroad with Columbus and the main line. 
Next town in size and of importance is Schu- 
lenburg, III miles from Houston, with a popu- 
lation of over 1200 ; then follow villages, each 
one the home of happy citizens of different 
nationalities, such as Fayetteville, Ehlinger, 
Round Top, Warrenton, Ledbetter, Ruster- 
ville, Winchester, Cistern, New Prague and 
High Hill. The water power of the Colorado 
River will soon become utilized ; it needs only 
capital and energy to convert the bending 
Colorado into a powerful motor that will move 
a hmidred industries. 

GONZALES COUNTY. 

This comity, partly traversed by the Sunset 
Route, ranks among the very best agricultural 
comities in the state. The county is about 
sixty miles in length and about twenty-five in 
width, containing iioo square miles; with a 
population of 18,000, rapidly increasing. In 
regard to scenery, water-courses, springs, soils, 
etc., this county has a great variety, and we 
only attempt to give some general outlines of 
such a vast body of land. 

The Sunset Route, in traversing this county, 
passes through Waelder, Harwood and Luling 
' — the latter place one of great importance 
as a winter resort for invalids, of which we will 
speak in its proper place. Gonzales is the 
county seat, and situated on the Guadalupe 
River, about a mile below the mouth of the 
San Marcos. It has over 2000 inhabitants, 
very fine buildings, a stone court-house, a large 
college building, etc., and offers to immigrants 
great inducements. 

There are few counties that are better 
watered. The Guadalupe and San Marcos 
Rivers, Peach, Plum and Sandy Creeks, and 
many rivulets, flow through it ; besides, there 
are never-failing lakes well supplied with good 
water, even during the driest seasons, and in 
all portions of this county well-water is found 
by digging from twenty to sixty feet. Most of 
the springs, and both rivers, contain lime- 
water — cool, healthy and very palatable after a 
short use of it . Some of the wells and springs 
are sulphur and some sour ; but near-by plenty 
of lime-water (sometimes fi-eestone) can be 
found. The land upon these rivers and creeks 
is naturally a fine alluvial soil, covered with a 
fine growth of black-walnut, biur and Spanish 
oak, hackberry, mulberry, pecan, Cottonwood, 
elm, ash, willow, sycamore, alder, box-alder, 
etc., and a dense imdergrowth of black and 
red haw, buckeye, wild china and plum, dog- 
wood and dogberry, and many small vines. 
The mustang grape-vines twine almost every 
tree and swing in graceful festoons from their 
boughs, heavily laden with rich clusters of 
grapes. Prairie land fonns the higher ground, 
in which nature stored away inexhaustible 



fertility, with a fine growth of native grasses, 
affording constant pasturage in spring, summer 
and winter. The uplands, touching these 
prairies, are well timbered with post-oak, live- 
oak, black-jack, hickory and various grape- 
vines ; and are also interspersed with undu- 
lating prairies with rich black soil covered with 
mesquite grass and mesquite timber. 

This is certainly the spot where the poor man 
may live independently, or the place for the 
capitalist to increase his wealth ; the more so 
as few healthier spots can be found in Texas. 
The climate is mild, the thermometer rarely 
getting higher than 96 degrees or lower than 
25 degrees, and during summer a healthy gidf 
breeze renders the country pleasant everywhere. 
Corn, cotton, oats, rye, wheat, millet, tobacco, 
sorghum, ribbon-cane, melons, peas, beans and 
all kinds of garden vegetables can be raised in 
abundance. Peaches, all kinds of grapes, 
plums, pears, figs, apples and apricots grow 
there ; and as there is an abundant supply of 
post-oak, pin-oak, pecan and black-jack, the 
mast alone is sufficient to fatten hogs. 

The new settler may rent land and will be 
furnished everything necessary to make a crop, 
and get one-half what he makes ; or he can 
buy land (the best in the comity) from $1.50 to 
$5.00 per acre. 

The citizens of this county are enterprising, 
liberal, intelligent and industrious, inviting the 
immigrant and others to share their resources. 
From Gonzales the railroad passes into 

CALDWELL COUNTY, 

"with the charming valley of the San Marcos 
River, renowned in song and story ;" "its rich 
and fertile soil, its stately cedars and towering 
pines, its bloom and beauty and fragrant sum- 
mer breezes — an Eden on earth." Caldwell 
County has an area of 522 square miles, about 
two-thirds of which is timbered and one-third 
prairie land. The timber consists of post-oak, 
elm, walnut, ash, hickory, mesquite, etc. The 
prairie lands are, as usual, very rich, and pro- 
duce abundantly cotton, corn, vegetables, many 
of the cereals, fruits, grapes, etc., as do the 
lands in Gonzales County. Lockhart, with a 
population of over 1000, is the county seat. 
The railroad passes through Luling only ; some 
miles from the road is the charming village, 
Prairie Lea. The total population of this 
coimty is over 10,000, and the gratifying in- 
crease is owing to a large immigration here by 
the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio 
Railway, and consequently much new land is 
becoming cultivated. The county swarms at 
present with all kinds of stock, and new homes 
give shelter and ]3lenty to all settlers. 

The springs of this county are celebrated for 
their medicinal qualities, and are visited by 
thousands who are seeking health — Burditt's 
Sour Wells, Cardwell's Spring, and others 
not far from the Smiset Route. As a winter 
resort these springs present unusual attractions, 
and together with the charming scenery and 
delightful chmate they excel by far the favorite 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 



27 



watering places upon the southern Atlantic 
coast. Therefore, some general outlines of the 
most prominent mineral spring near the Sunset 
Route will be given herein. 

LULING SPRINGS. 

" These springs have come to be of marvel- 
ous value during the past few years, and they 
have the advantages of good hotels and places 
where invahds can be properly and comfortably 
cared for. Luling is situated in Caldwell 
County, on the line of the Galveston, Harris- 
burg and San Antonio Railway, 155 miles west 
from Houston and 57 miles east from San 
Antonio. The reputation of the Luling sour 
water is wide-spread, and large numbers from 
the North and East are seeking its benefits. 
It is also shipped to different parts of the 
coimtry, and furnished to those who cannot 
aftbrd the expense of visiting the springs. As 
a winter resort Luling is one of the most 
desirable in Texas. The climate is like that of 
San Antonio, and in addition to the great 
value of its waters is the mild and invigorating 
atmosphere, which alone will restore health to 
a system that has become weakened and de- 
pleted. The most alarming cases of inflamma- 
tory rheumatism, and indeed all diseases of an 
inflammatory order will yield to the use of these 
waters. It is also a specific for the cure of 
chronic diarrhea, and many other of the 
diseases that afflict mankind. 

" The following is the analysis of the Luling 
sour water : Sulphate of lime ; sulphate of 
magnesia, in large quantities ; chloride of 
sodium ; chloride of potassium ; carbonate 
of iron, in moderate quantity ; phosphate 
and choride of lime ; sulphates of alumma 
and baryta, and traces of silica and strontia, 
and large quantities of free sulphuric acid. 
Its benefits extend to all diseases that proceed 
from an abnormal condition of the biliary 
secretions. ' ' 

In Caldwell County have been discovered 
traces of silver ore, and southeast of Lockhart 
an abundance of iron, while in other parts 
veins of coal have been found ; all of which 
will be fully examined and utilized as soon as 
this beautiful county becomes more thickly 
settled. Now to the celebrated 

GUADALUPE COUNTV'. 

The beautiful San Marcos River forms its 
northwestern boundary, the clear Cibolo runs 
through its western section, while the noble 
and charming Guadalupe River traverses its 
central portion, forming one of the loveliest 
valleys in Texas, and not only the loveliest, but 
the most productive. The general character of 
the surface of this county is undulating and 
varied. It is situated on the twenty-first 
degree of longitude west from Washington, 
and between the twenty-ninth and thirtieth 
degrees of latitude north. The soil ranges 
from the rich, black, sandy loam of the mes- 
quite lands, to a light, sandy soil which is 
easily tilled and of great productive strength ; 



especially so along the streams, where a large 
percentage of humus adds greatly to the 
fertility. 

The rapids of the Guadalupe River, not far 
from the celebrated iron bridge, are beautiful ; 
the clear water dashes over a rocky plateau 
and forms many graceful cascades ; between 
these cascades numerous small islets, covered 
with shrubs, relieve the eye from the brilliant 
white foam of the Guadalupe ; anglers are en- 
gaged in securing trout and other specimens of 
the finny tribes with which this river abounds. 
Looking up these water-falls the iron bridge 
is suspended over the river ; on the right shore 
of the Guadalupe, majestic cypress trees stretch 
their graceful branches over numberless other 
trees and shrubs of smaller size. The whole 
landscape is all light and shadow — the dark 
green shores contrasting finely with the 
pearly hues of the foaming cascades ; and 
over-arching all is a vault of deep azure, 
where the white crane sails and the sinking 
sun reflects in all its splendor the last rays in 
the sparkling river. 

Wood-land and prairie about equally divide 
the county, which is comprised within an area 



•iSr'i- 







of about 800 square miles, with a population of 
over 11,000 intelligent and thriving citizens. 
Its elevation above the gulf is 700 feet, the 
mean temperature about sixty-nine degrees, 
the rainfall sometimes thirty-four inches. The 
products are cotton, corn, oats, rye, wheat, all 
kinds of vegetables and fruits, also grapes in 
abundance. Timber of but moderate growth 
is found here, but enough for domestic or fenc- 
ing purposes. Along the rivers are fine sections 
of oak and black-walnut timber ; and as 
springs and creeks abound in every section in 
this county, everything grows luxuriantly. 
vSeguin, the county seat, is a flourishing town 
of 2500 inhabitants, situated upon the north 
bank of the Guadalupe River, on the line of 
the "Sunset Route," 35 miles east of San 
Antonio, and 180 from Houston. The town 
is built upon a beautiful plateau, interspersed 
with giant live-oaks, beneath which are 
many sparkling springs. A tributary of the 
Guadalupe passes through the city, which 
is spanned by two fine bridges. The public 
buildings are large and comfortable, and 
besides many elegant private residences there 



28 



BEXAR COUNTY. 



are ten churches, the college and a high school. 
In and near Seguin are three water-mills, and 
west, about one mile below the railroad bridge, 
is a fall of ten to twelve feet, where several 
hundred horse-power might be yet utilized. 

The climate so near San Antonio is delight- 
ful ; stock-raisers do well, and to the agricul- 
turist rare inducements are offered. Next 
the Sunset Route enters the world-renowned 
and historical grounds of Bexar County, but 
passes first a village by the name of Marion, 
191 miles from Houston, which place is well 
known, as the stage-coach takes from there 
passengers to various inland villages. 

BEXAR COUNTY 

has an area of 1475 square miles and a popula- 
tion of over 32,000. The county is situated in 
the southwestern portion of the state, between 
the 29th and 30th degrees of latitude north, 
and between the 21st and 22d degrees of longi- 
tude west from Washington. Formerly this 
comity embraced an area larger than the State 
of New York, and is perhaps the best known 
county in Texas. Its topography is a grand 
undulating prairie, a portion of which is tim- 
bered with varieties of trees usually found in 
this section of the state. The altitude is high ; 
the soils are very rich, ranging in depth from 
thi-ee to fifteen and twenty feet. The county 
is watered by the Ciliolo, San Pedro, San 
Antonio and Medina Rivers; the Leon, Medio, 
Colabras, Cottonwood, Balcones and Geronimo 
Creeks, and a large number of springs which 
flow from the base of limestone and sandstone 
formations, including tlie famous San Pedro and 
San Antonio springs. 

This county, under favorable circumstances, 
will produce abundantly cotton, corn, wheat 
and the other small grains ; also tobacco, rice, 
sugar-cane, broom corn, castor beans, Califor- 
nia clover, Hmigarian grass, millet and every 
variety of vegetables ; and of fruits, such as 
peaches, pears, apples, plums — ^\•hile figs and 
grapes are produced to perfection. The alti- 
tude of Bexar County above the gulf, its supply 
of clear and running water, the cooling breezes 
from the south, the delightful and exhilarating 
climate, and its freedom from low bottom lands, 
renders it the most healthy in the state, and 
perhaps in tlie whole country. 

In regard to San Antonio, the county seat of 
this coimty, with a population of about 25,000, 
so much has been v'ritten as to how it can be 
reached fi-om Houston or Austin and other 
parts of the country, and what wonderful 
attractions the city offers to tourists and inva- 
lids, etc., that we prefer the following beautiful 
description by Mrs. Harriet Prescott Spofford to 
oiu: o%\n ; we, in addition, will only continue 
the description where this charming writer 
stopped some years ago. The following article 
(ending on page 40) is herewith copied, by the 
courteous permission of Harper Bros., from 
their popular magazine : 

" At the moment that you start west\vard on 
the Simset Route, the landscape salutes you in 



all the loveliness of a blossoming prairie iw its 
first luxuriance of green under the tender early 
sun. The flowers are numberless. When you 
have counted a couple of dozen varieties, you 
find you have only begun. Here the painted- 
cup makes the great reaches gay ; here yellow 
indigo stars them, and presently lends them its 
color, leading away into the boundless horizon 
a Field of the Cloth of Gold ; here it is scarlet 
with the scarlet phlox, here blue with the ver- 
bena ; here the lilies, with their long snowy 
filaments wondrously alive, whiten all the wind- 
ings of an unseen brook ; here, clothed in the 
priceless small clover, and greener than Dante's 
freshly broken emeralds, beneath vast and hol- 
low heavens, and ' moulded in colossal calm, ' 
the naked prairie rolls away, league after 
league, unbroken to the gulf. 

Oh, the glory of a Texas prairie under a 
vertical sim ! the light, the color, the distance, 
the vast solitude and silence, the limitless level, 
the everlasting rest ! A flock of white cranes 
rise flashing in the light and soar away ; a 
mirage lifts the lofty timber that outlines a dis- 
tant river, and shows you the stream shining 
beneath, shaking silver vapor at its feet ; in the 
creek beside you, fearless blue ducks dip and 
dive and skim away, scattering the \\ater- 
drops ; a drove of horses, rising from beds of 
simflowers, with flying manes and tails, go 
bounding into space ; vast herds of cattle crop 
the clover without lifting their heads as you 
sweep by ; riders are romiding up their droves, 
hawks are hovering, birds are singing, winds 
are blowing, and what seemed only solitude 
and silence is full of life and action and music. 
Now the forests of the Brazos begin to rustle ; 
cypress and magnolia, linden and locust, ash 
and beech and elm, hickory and black-jack, 
dense to darkness, yet trembling with dew and 
smi, laced with gay vines of trumpet and passion 
flowers, and with huge ropes of blossoming 
grape slung from tree to tree, thick with under- 
growth of dogwood and redbud, wild peach 
and cane, and their great dark live-oaks 
wrapped in the fantastic shadows of a thou- 
sand gray swaying cobwebs, and standing 
weird and awful in their Druidical beards. 
And out on what bottom-lands you come — the 
Nile-rich bottoms of the Brazos and of the 
Colorado ; the black mould and the chocolate 
of an unmeasured depth ; the cotton springing 
in endless rows of opening, bean-like leaves ; 
the delicate sugar-cane just shaking out its 
ribbons 1 Here in the Brazos we dash by a 
sugar plantation, the low house with its broad 
verandas and wide-open doors under huge 
trees, in the distance the great sugar mills, and 
all around it the two thousand acres that make 
it a yearly return of one hundred thousand 
dollars. In the old times it Mas worked by 
a couple of hundred slaves ; now seventy con- 
victs under an armed and mounted guard do as 
well. 

There is, however, let us say in passing, no 
trouble about work in Texas. Political diffi- 
culties were over there sooner than elsewhere 



THE ^-STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ^^SUNSET" ROUTE. 




30 



SAA' ANTONIO IN RE VIE IV. 



in the South, and the affairs of labor equalized 
themselves to the laws of supply and demand. 
Throughout the state the freedmen are in- 
dustrious and quiet, securing a good livelihood 
and laying up money. 

Not far away, and still in the Brazos bottoms, 
by Oyster Lake, a Massachusetts colony is 
setting up its tents ; and here land may be had 
for five dollars an acre, better than lands on 
the Illinois alluvial for fifty dollars an acre, 
and quite as healthy. 

Still we roll on, slowly mounting the six 
hundred feet of altitude at which San Antonio 
lies above the sea, out upon other prairies, 
where a single pasture of one hundred thou- 
sand acres fences in its tremendous herds. 
Flocks of birds darken the air like clouds of 
leaves, and vanish ; a deer, perhaps, bounds 
by ; a great buzzard is spreading his ragged 
wings over his unseen quarry ; a carriage and 
pair go gently along the springing sod — strange 
anomaly, so far it seems just then from usual 
life. We roll past Bernard, whence, with but 
one house in sight, nearly ten thousand bales 
of cotton are dispatched ; past the young city 
of New Philadelphia ; past the lovely Eagle 
Lake, with its fish and game ; past Schulen- 
burg, whose former owner, annoyed by the 
approach of civilization with the railroad, 
refused to sell a right of way, but disposed of 
his whole estate, and moved on where no one 
could elbow him — six years ago a homestead, 
to-day a town with mills and workshops, and 
daily paper ; past Luling, with its neighboring 
Sour Springs, working cures by repute won- 
derful as the Pool of Bethesda, the gate to the 
San Marcos, whose fairy-like beauty has been 
so fitly sung by Mrs. Davis, the sweetest singer 
of the South ; past a score of neat villages, 
under their live-oaks and pecans ; and so on 
and up and out on the great grain region ot 
the world, where the tender wheat is springing 
in long stretches vanishing from sight, the rye 
is already high, the corn is up two feet — a vast 
roUmg region of plains and sun-bathed slopes, 
before which Mesopotamia is a fable, and the 
wealth of Odessa is but dust. Over the 
Guadalupe then, the three Santa Claras, the 
Cibolo, the Salado, straight into the sunset 
that casts out its long beams and reddens sky 
and prairie, and wells up in a flood of lustre 
suddenly extinguished by the quick-descending 
night. Lights begin to twinkle below, and 
you descend into San Antonio. There is a 
crowd of dark faces at the station, a confusion 
of strange tongues. As the carriage goes 
along, soft wafts of balmiest fragrance salute 
you ; you are conscious of being in a world of 
flowers. As you alight at the Menger, enter a 
narrow, unevenly stoned passage, and come 
out upon a broad flagged court-yard, sur- 
rounded on three sides by open galleries, with 
the stars overhead, and the lamp-light flaring 
on a big mulberry-tree growing in it below, 
you feel that you are in the heart of Old Spain. 

San Antonio is like nothing so much as the 
little African town of Blidah that Eusjene 



Fromentin comes upon in the midst of the 
desert, set behind jalousies, among gardens 
and fountains, smothered in roses, and sung to 
by nightingales. On a more enchanting spot 
the eye of poet never rested. There is prob- 
ably nothing like it in America. Four days 
ago you left the snow of March or April 
under the windows at home, now your room 
is full of roses ; and as you go out and 
about, you find the town one wilderness 
of roses, a very Vale of Cashmere. Blush 
and creamy and blood-red, the delicate little 
Scotch rose, the superb Marshal Niel, the 
shining Lamarque, the beautiful great tea-rose, 
hundred -leaved and full, waxen-white, and 
damask, the heavy-headed Persian rose itself 
— they hedge gardens by the quarter of a 
mile together, lattice every veranda, climb 
and lie in masses of bud and blossom on every 
roof. It is a long red roof usually, that, bend- 
ing slightly, forms also the roof of the veranda. 
Most of the houses beneath it are long and low 
and narrow, of a single story, and but one 
step from the ground, built of a cream-colored 
stone that works easily and hardens in the air, 
and so placed that the south wind or the east 
shall blow in every room — the wind that blows 
all day long from the gulf, and makes the 
fervent heat itself a joy. There is no vesti- 
bule ; you enter the saloon from the door, and 
the other rooms open on either side of that, 
and as they all open on the veranda, that is 
used as a hall. Over them rise the tall cotton- 
woods and the huge spreading pecans, and 
before them or behind them, almost invariably, 
flows a swift, clear, artificial stream of water 
some four or five feet wide, the banks now 
stoned in, now covered with a lush growth of 
the blooming cannas and caladiums, immense 
arrow-headed leaves the size of an African 
warrior's shield, and now bridged beneath 
honeysuckle arbors. 

These charming dwellings stand with little 
regularity or uniformity, but here and there, 
facing this way and that, just as the winding 
roads wind with the winding river, and always 
half buried in a sweet seclusion of leaf and 
blossom. Not roses only, but all the other 
flowers under heaven : lilies and myrtles and 
geraniums make the air a bliss to breathe ; 
aloes sit drawing in the sunshine, suddenly to 
shoot it out in one long spike of yellow bloom 
higher than the house itself ; the Spanish- 
dagger lifts its thick palm-like trunk, and 
bristles at a thousand points around its great 
cone of creamy bells ; the euphorbia clothes 
its strange and lofty stem with a downy green, 
and then flowers with a blossom like a redbird 
just alit ; m every vacant space the acacia 
' waves her yellow hair ' — the very acacia, it 
is said, with whose long scarlet silken stamens 
tumbling out of their yellow hood Moore has 
taken such poetic license. There are groups 
of bananas, too, the arch of whose huge leaves 
reminds you only of Paul and Virginia's home ; 
there are walls of the scarlet pomegranate, 
one blaze of glory ; lanes lined with the 



THE ''■STAR AKD CRESCENT'' AXD '' SUNSET" ROUTE. 



lovely-leaved fig-lree, where the fig is already 
large; and the comely mulberry-tree, grown to 
an enormous size, is drippmg with its blacken- 
ing and delicious fruit. Sometimes there are 
summer-houses at the gate almost half the 
size of the dwelling, entirely covered with 
vines, and the whole spot so sequestered behind 
mimosa and cacti and huge-leaved plants that 
it seems only a tropical tangle that you might 
hesitate to enter ; but, pushing your way 
through which, you will find, behind broad 
porches, lofty rooms with polished floors and 
rugs, books and pictures and vases and costly 
furniture, inhabited by white-clad women 
whose manners have peculiar grace. 

In and out among these houses slips the San 
Antonio River, clear as crystal, swifter than a 
mill-race ; now narrow and foaming along be- 
tween steep banks rich with luxuriant semi- 
tropical growth, and with the tall pecans on 
either side meeting above them in vaulting 
shadow ; now spreading in sunny shallows 
between long grassy swards starred with 
flowers, twisting and turning and doubling on 
itself, so tortuous that the three miles of the 
straight line from its head to the market-place 
it makes only in fourteen miles of caprices and 
surprises, rapids and eddies and falls and 
arrowy curves, reach after reach of soft green 
gloom and flickering sunshine, each more ex- 
quisitely beautiful than the other. Around 
every lane it takes a loop ; here it is just a 
pebbly ford, there, although so perfectly trans- 
parent that you can see every flint in its bed, it 
is of a profound depth, and everywhere it is of 
a color whose loveliness is past belief. It flows 
by the Mexican jacal, and through the wealthy 
garden, around the churches, across the busi- 
ness streets with its delightful glimpses. You 
cannot escape it ; you think you have left it 
behind you, and there it is before you, hurry- 
ing along to the forests on its two hundred 
miles to the gulf. It is a happy course this 
river runs to-day, but a hard fate is in store 
for the lovely San Antonio. All its pretty, 
boisterous play is presently to become the 
groaning labor of a slave, for the sixty feet of 
its fall, if it is something to delight the heart 
of a poet, is something also to dilate the bank 
account of the manufacturer. 

The San Antonio is joined in the valley by 
the San Pedro, another limpid stream, that 
pours from the rock and winds through some 
public gardens before making itself more 
useful. 

The town lies in its valley in the broad basin 
of the great hills, and upon both sides of the 
river, and the serpentine course of the river, 
crossed by a score of bridges and as many 
fords, is such a confusion and a snare that you 
never know upon which side of it you are. 
The streets in the old part of the city are ex- 
ceedingly narrow, and by no means clean, 
and the sidewalks are narrower yet, and worn 
in ruts by the tread of numerous feet. Many 
of the buildings on this street are of adobe, all 
of them a single story in height, most of them 



with galleries, as the veranda and piazza and 
porch are called. Some of i\\c\w have a 
curious front, the wall projecting a couple of 
feet above tlie line where eaves should be, and 
pierced by rain-spouts, forming a breastwork 
Ijchind which the defender lay protected, 
while through the rain -spouts firing down into 
the streets, which, in the furious old times that 
this town has known, with now one master 
and now another, were wont to run with blood. 
Narrow as the streets are they are incum- 
bered in every way and made still narrower. 
Mere the incumbrance is carts full of huge 
blocks of unhewn stone, which are handled by 
brawny Mexicans and negroes, without der- 
ricks, and which the citizens patiently submit 
to see cut in the streets day by day instead of 
in the stone-cutter's yard ; here it is trains of 



.-^^ -^ 



^T. 




clumsy Mexican wagons covered with canvas 
and drawn by oxen whose yokes are bound 
upon their horns, thus occasioning every jolt 
to jar the brain, and shortening the term of 
service of the stoutest beast. Often the main 
plaza is entirely covered with these teams, the 
great oxen lying all day in the sun there, and 
from under the canvas of the wagons protrude 
a crowd of little dark faces that make one 
fancy all Mexico is on the move. Sometimes 
the incumbrance is a string of donkeys that 
trot through the streets, each one with a single 
fagot on his back, oddly contrasted by 
another where each one is so hidden by his 
load of straw, hay, fresh grass, sugar-cane, or 
corn, according to the season, whose long 
blades and stems trail upon the ground, that 
only his head and ears show how the bundle 
moves. Now it is a Mexican family trans- 
ferring their altar — the Lares and Penates — 
on a cart, the father leading it, the mother 
and grandmother totally obscured by the 
things they lug along, an infinity of children 
round their heels, dirty and ragged and with 
tangled hair, but with the blackest eyes and 
whitest teeth, the ruddiest dark cheek and 
most roguish smile ever seen, and with the 
Ixiljy all but bare, strapped on a blanket on a 
mule's back, sound asleep in the sun, as sweet 
a little morsel as the first baby ever born in 
paradise. If it is a Mexican family in a cart 
encountered thus, the mother is always on the 
front seat, while the father sits behind and 
holds the baby. Here it is an army train that 
stops the way, and makes a prominent feature 



32 



SAN AXrOXIO IN REVIEW. 



of the streets — huge covered wagons drawn 
by mules four abreast, with an armed and 
mounted escort, whose rifles and broad 
cartridge belts mean business — on its way to 
the yet distant frontier, between which and 
the town a train is almost always moving, as 
supplies are being dispatched, or officers' 
families are taking their long ambulance 
journeys. These streets afford a good deal of 
interest, and add much variety and vivacity 
to life for the invalids who visit San Antonio 
seeking health, the number of whom is large, 
since the air there and in the surrounding 
region seems to have peculiar properties that 
render it almost a specific for consumption and 
diseases of the throat ; and the invalids who 
have come down there simply to prolong life 
have in uncounted cases gone away entirely 
cured. You will see these re-born people, 
themselves a sight, strolling and driving about 
in all the pleased surprise of their return to 
life, and that in a town of such strange and 
foreign sights to them. Here comes a gay 
Mexican rider, too, who, if he is in full dress, 
wears his dark trousers buttoned up the out- 
side of his leg with silver bells ; his jacket rich 
with dollars, and his belt ; his great light felt 
sombrero stiff with embroidery of gold and 
silver ; and his bridle and saddle, stirrup and 
spurs, shining and clattering again with silver. 
Or perhaps it is a party of ladies bounding 
along, for every woman in San Antonio is a 
fine and fearless rider ; or some heavy cavalry 
riders, superb in blue and gold ; or else it is 
a mounted beggar, who, if he does not have a 
servant to carry his bag, as the Fayal beggar 
does, yet rejoices in a stout little burro of his 
own. Here on the sidewalks, beneath an 
umbrella-tree that sheds abroad powerful 
fragrance, little tables are spread, where the 
market people get their roll and chocolate and 
bit of pastry, sitting where the gutter would 
run if there was one. Here, too, are the 
venders of strange dark candies, from which 
the flies are brushed with a cow's tail ; of 
porcupine-work ; of bunches of magnolias, 
and great, ineffably sweet Cape jasmines from 
the coast ; and Mexican women crouch upon 
the hot stones, their dark sad faces half veiled 
by their ragged ribosas, surrounded by wicker 
cages full of mocking-bu'ds, vivid cardinals 
with their red crests, and lively little canaries 
on whose plumage every color under the sun 
glistens, making the tiny creatures marvels of 
emerald and gold and ruby and tiu-quois. 
These Mexican faces are a great part of the 
little town ; there are portions of it, called 
Chihuahua and Laredo, where you see noth- 
ing else. There, tumbling in the dirt, are 
the Mexican babies, than whom nothing can 
be lovelier ; there, too, are the Mexican grand- 
mothers, than whom nothing can be uglier. 
Here you can buy skins of leopards and 
ocelots, which the Indian M'omen dress with 
the brains of the beast till they are as supple as 
silk ; here are the little Chihuahua dogs that 
can nestle in the sleeve of your coat ; here is 



wonderful Mexican needle-work, made on the 
drawn thread, rivaling the Old-World laces ; 
here are earthen pipkins or jarritos prettily 
ornamented, with their molinilios, or curious, 
wooden sticks, set in many rings, which, 
rolled upright between the palms, make the 
chocolate foam in the pipkin. Whatever you 
buy, felon will be given you ; and whatever 
the Mexican buys himself, be it but five cents 
worth, he expects pelon, or something thrown 
into the bargain, which renders him not toa 
profitable a customer. Here, in these old 
regions of the town, you can still see the 
women patiently crushing the corn on the 
matata ; and here, at almost any hut, you can 
get Mexican refreshment, if you wish it, that 
will make you odorous for days. 

Everywhere about the outskirts of the to-wn 
are innumerable low huts built of sticks and 
mud and straw and any old drift, roofed with 
thatch coming almost to the ground, and pre- 
senting an appearance of the utmost squalor. 
These are the Mexican jacals. The chimney 
and its ovens are usually in a cone of baked 
and blackened mud a little removed, and 
under a rude awning or a tree the whole 
family is usually to be seen, with mules, 
donkeys, chickens, and a horde of dogs, 
among the latter a hideous, hairless animal, 
promiscuously intermixed. Dogs are largely 
in the majority of the population in San 
Antonio, and their baying divides the noises, 
of the night with the cock-crowing that re- 
sounds from house to jacal, from farm to 
ranche, and rises on the ear in broad surges 
of sound like the waves of the sea. If you 
should glance into one of these jacals, you 
would find an earthen floor cleanly swept, a 
bed neatly made and brightly covered, and 
the place garnished after its sort ; and although 
the general idea is that it is a nest of filth, to 
the casual eye it seems clean and orderly, but 
poor to the last degree of poverty. Yet the 
Mexican here can live on less than any. In 
the summer the corn and onion and peppers 
of his garden-patch meet his needs ; in the 
winter, even when he owns his bit of land, a 
five-penny soup bone and one sweet potato 
comprise his usual marketing. But poor as- 
he may be, his daughters do not go out to 
service ; his mother wraps her ribosa — that 
remnant of the Spanish mantilla — about her 
with the grand air ; and he himself, although 
in rags, salutes you on the street with the 
grave courtesy of a Spanish don. Making 
exception of the proud old Mexican families, 
of lineage and repute, who live in seclusion, it 
is not possible to feel that these people who 
are known as Mexicans have any claim to the 
name as we use it. They are simply a gentler 
Indian, accepting a sort of civilization, now 
and then with a fairer tint, now and then 
with a wave in the hair that tells of darker 
blood, and always with a high cheek-bone, 
following them to the tenth generation. 
The proud Castilian has but small part in 
them, the gentle Montezuma race perhaps has 



Tim ''STAR AND CRESCENT" AND '-SUNSET" ROUTE. 



' #^>%:( 




34 



SAX AXTOXIO IX REVIEW. 



less. One having those two strains in his 
veins— the Spaniard, with his hemisphere of 
poetry behind him ; the Montezuman, repre- 
senting ancient and rightful empire of the 
continent — should wear, it would seem, other 
than these low-browed faces stamped in their 
dumb and sullen ignorance, whether you see 
them on the women squatting on the brick 
floor of the cathedral, or on the men lounging 
in the plazas against anything which will up- 
hold them, darker and more sullen for the 
shadow of their huge sombreros. 

San Antonio is, in fact, a Spanish town to- 
day, and the only one where any considerable 
remnant of Spanish life exists in the United 
States. In its old archives much interesting 
information is held concerning the early Span- 
ish rule in this country, and here also, by-the- 
way, are some papers going very far to prove 
the utter innocence of Aaron Burr of the trea- 
son under the charge of which he suffered. 
Many of the people proudly call themselves 
Spanish, and most of the Americans of the 
region find it necessary to speak their tongue 
easily ; a lawyer, indeed, could hardly prac- 
tice his profession without knowledge of the 
language, which he needs in examining wit- 
nesses, in pleading, and in recourse to the 
documents in the matter of land titles, many 
of which are in the Spanish, while most of the 
local laws are founded on old Spanish usage. 
Land is still measured here by the vara, and 
the town has its alameda, its plazas, its ace- 
quias, the houses have their jalousies, and the 
stranger never loses a foreign feeling while he 
stays. It is true that there are large numbers 
of Germans, French, and Poles here, that no 
shop-keeper employs a clerk who can not 
deal with at least two of these nationalities 
besides his own, and the place is in a manner 
cosmopolitan ; t)ut Spain is at the foundation 
of the whole of it. The secular buildings are 
such as those which the earthquakes had 
forced on the Spaniard in Mexico, and which, 
from habit, he brought with him — and wher- 
ever the modern builder varies the design, he 
ornaments the galleries with a light wood- 
work, cut, doubtless unconsciously, in a Moor- 
ish pattern— and the church buildings are 
such as those which the Spaniard venerated 
in his mother-land. The Cathedral of San 
Fernando has, indeed, been i-ebuilt, retaining 
only a small fragment of the old building at 
the back ; but the other ancient church build- 
ings, quainter and more picturesque, known 
as missions, although in ruins, have endured 
no alteration of design. 

San Antonio was itself a mission. A poor 
little village called San Fernandez in 1698, it 
was deemed best to remove thither from the 
Rio Grande the mission of San Antonio de 
Valero, in execution of a plan still further to 
settle and civilize Texas, and thus to repress 
the encroachments of the French, who, under 
the pretensions of La Salle's brief occupancy, ■ 
were always laying claim to it. Thenceforth 
the mission was known as that of San Antonio , 



de Bexar, from the name of the province, 
Bexar being an immense section of territory 
then comprising nearly all of southwestern 
Texas, attached to the Intendancy of San Luis 
Potosi. The population of the town was in- 
creased by a royal importation of families from 
the Canary Islands and from Tlaxcala, and 
during the following half century the missions 
of La Purisima Concepcion, of San Jose, San 
Juan and La Espada were built down the river, 
each a few miles from the other, and the Alamo 
was begun on the left bank just behind the 
town. These were posts partly religious, 
partly defensive, founded by the Franciscans, 
to whom some five square leagues were given 
for the purpose, and who induced the milder 
Indians to cultivate the rich lands, improve 
their own condition, and enlarge the revenues 
of the Church, without any doubt performing 
a great work of civilization. The buildings of 
the missions usually consisted of a noble church 
at one end of the square, a fort at the other, 
the apartments of the friars, the huts of the 
laborers, the granaries and storehouses dis- 
tributed between, all of massive stone, and 
inclosed behind a high wall completing the 
whole as a fortress, which was, indeed, neces- 
sary, subject as it was to the incursions of the 
fierce northern Indians. 

These missions have an interest for us quite 
apart from their beauty, for they stand up in 
their solitude and decay, still giving silent tes- 
timony to the immense debt that we, as a 
people, owe to-day to the old conquistadores 
of Spain. They are a part of the visible ro- 
mance of our country, too ; for they met the 
line of that chain of forts which followed in 
the adventurous path of the Sieur de la Salle 
and the intrepid Father Hennepin from the 
Great Lakes to the Red River, and they also 
^\•ere the outposts of civilization in the wilder- 
ness. The monks of these missions, more- 
over, were those who opened to the world the 
resources of this great empire of the West ; 
with their patience and labor, they were the 
first pioneers of the region, and but for the 
riches which the soil displayed at their touch, 
the colonist might not have been tempted here 
for a century later. They cleared the way for 
a new power among the peoples of the earth, 
and in the annexation of that power to our 
own, in the war that followed and the conse- 
quent acquisition of all the northern half of 
Mexican territory and the great train of cir- 
cumstances resulting, one sees that, like all the 
other conscientious workers of the world, they 
' builded better than they knew.' 

Every one of these missions is now a ruin ; 
the grass grows on so much of the roof as is 
left, the mesquite starts up in the long cloisters 
where the fathers used to pace, the cactus 
sprouts and blossoms in the crannies of the 
outer wall, the wild thyme hangs in bunches 
there, and sweetens all the lonesome summer 
air. Nothing can describe the solitary gran- 
deur and beauty of the Concepcion, and the 
marvelous piece of color that it makes, as you 



THE "■STAR AND CRESCEXT'' AND '■^SUNSET" ROUTE. 



35 



drive over the prairie, first approaching it 
when, a mile and a half from the town, its 
twin towers and dome darkly rise on the lumi- 
nous sky. It is the first religious ruin you 
have seen in America — indeed, these ruins are, 
we think, the only things of the sort in the 
country ; its existence is a romance, its con- 
dition a mystery, and a vague pathos haunts 
its broken arches and disused cells. The mis- 
sion of San Jose, some four miles below the 
first, is, however, both finer and more interest- 
ing. This is really, it is said, the mission of 
San Juan, but through a transmutation of 
names peculiar to Texas, in which, for in- 
stance, the original Brazos became the Colo- 
rado, and the Colorado the Brazos, the place 
is now always known as San Jose. The build- 
ings of this, the second mission, were not only 
of finer design and workmanship, but they 
were those of a scholastic as well as of a reli- 
gious institution, inclosed a much larger space, 
and are left in much more detail. The church 
was built in the style introduced in Europe by 
the Jesuits when the Renaissance had become 
wearying — the style from which subsequently 
the Louis Quatorze developed itself. But 
although a meretricious style, its effect, judg- 
ing from these ruins, must have been very fine, 
particularly in the dazzling light of this lati- 
tude, and the execution of its details was of 
the best. The stone, although now lichen- 
eaten and weather-stained, is the soft cream- 
colored stone of the district, which is easily 
wrought, the surface walls frescoed with a 
diaper of vermilion and blue, of which only 
faint lines remain. All the lofty facade is a 
mass of superb sculpture of colossal figures, 
Avith cherubs, scrolls and iiowers ; similar 
noble work surrounds one of the exquisitely 
beautiful windows ; but for the rest, the great 
halls are roofless, the long arcades are crumb- 
ling into mounds of dust, and even the fine 
statuary has been defaced by wanton wretches 
who have enriched themselves with the hand 
of a St. Joseph or the head of an infant Jesus. 
Such as the carving is, it is regarded with 
superstitious idolatry by the simple Mexicans 
whose village surrounds the ruin, and the 
priesthood itself would not dare to take any 
measures for its preservation that should re- 
move it from their daily sight. The chapel 
attached to the mission is still in use, a weekly 
service being held there. In spite of its pretty 
font and of the groined arches of its vaulted 
roof, it is a sad spot. Two or three old paint- 
ings adorn it, a sacred image stands in the lofty 
niche of the only window, which, lined with 
scarlet, surrounds the image in a blazing 
aureole, while the walls all about the altars 
are strung with the votive offerings of the poor 
worshipers, who, since they can not give lace 
and jewels, and gold-wrought altar cloths, 
give curious patch-work hangings which are 
inexpressibly touching to see. There are said 
to be great underground chambers attached 
to this mission building, capable of holding 
two years' provision of wheat, together witta 



secret passages to the river, so that the water 
supply could never be cut off ; and owing to 
this, the mission was able once to endure, 
triumphandy, according to tradition, a siege 
of eighteen months' duration from those war- 
like Indians who never ceased their hostility 
to the undertaking of the Spaniard and the 
Franciscan. Of the other missions, down the 
river, there is scarcely enough left to mention; 
but take them by moonlight, the effulgent 
moonlight of San Antonio, and they are worth 
a journey to see, the front of La Espada 
towermg above the dark foliage, a melancholy 
haunt of poetry and dreams. WTiy all these 
buildings have been allowed to fall into such a 
condition it is not easy to say. Whether it 
was that the secularization of the missions 
crippled them beyond their strength, whether 
the Indian service was no longer able to main- 
tain them, whether the dry climate had any 
particularly injurious effect upon them, whether 




the depredations of marauders have been equal 
to such destruction, or whether it is judged 
that they are most effective as they are — what- 
ever the reason, the lover of the picturesque 
may well be thankful f )r the result. 

The drive to these missions, in deep woods, 
across all the fords at all the windings of the 
rivers, through the forsaken avenues of pecans 
that the good friars planted, and up the open 
prairie-side, is as wide and delightful a con- 
trast with the ruins as it is possible to imagine, 
and accents a great deal of their charm. Here 
is no decay, no disrepair. Nature is alive 
and throbbing through every leaf and blade ; 
the mesquite is waving all light and feathery 
grace on every ripple of the air, a thing of 
beauty, half sunshine and half verdure ; the 
mustang grape, with a stem the size of a baby's 



S.-4.V AXTOX/O LV KEI'/EIV. 



waist, twists itself in long, loose ropes and 
testoons from tree to tree, and spices the 
wood ; the great ratamma, with its yellow 
primrose flower set in a radiation of slender 
green spike-like leaves, shines with all its 
lamps against the dark masses of the magnifi- 
cent pecan ; and earlier in the year the 
wisache, each spray of which, strung with 
downy golden balls, is precious in the North- 
ern conservatory, soars like an illumination 
beside the way, and the thickets of the lovely 
frijo-lio clothe themselves in purple with the 
narcissus at their feet. All around the Con- 
cepcion mission, where one of the deadliest 
fights of the Texan revolution once reddened 
the grass, sheets of the white prickly-poppy 
wave in the wind, the Texas star sprinkles 
the sod, and the delicate little white rain- 
lilies that spring after a shower, scatter their 
delicious odor ; everywhere over the broad 
slopes the prickly-pear blazes up in the sun 
with its big red and yellow cups full of flame : 
in the same colors, native to the soil, scarlet 
and orange lantanas and abutilons grow be- 
side the slender swaying mountain heliotrope 
with its white blossom and vanilla scent, while 
violet and verbena, morning-glory, marandia, 
convolvulus, and clematis, greet the familiar 
eye, and unknown blossoms flaunt in every 
copse. The music of the mocking-bird, 
which tilts on countless topmost boughs, is 
pouring over you in floods of ecstacy ; the 
cardinal-bird's note pipes clear as he darts 
from the shadow of one bush to another like a 
winged coal of fire ; the little finches warble 
and thrill ; the turtle doves coo on the low 
boughs, or go skipping together across the 
grass ; the scissors-tail and the chacalaca skim 
over the tops of the thorny chaparral ; a flock 
of blackbirds that seem to have lit on the knoll 
in a patch of yellow blossoms fly away at your 
approach, and take the blossoms with them ; 
the rabbits bound along the ground ; the 
splendid wings of butterflies brush your face. 

Just below the second mission you come to 
the falls of the San Antonio. Although the 
falls themselves, divided into many, are of no 
great height, yet the volume of tumbling foam, 
the wondrous color of the waters, and all the 
harmony of the world of verdure that in every 
shade of mighty oak, dipping willow, and 
feathery fern swings over the stream which 
slips so smoothly to the fall, and with such 
jewel-like polish that its very swiftness seems 
stillness, make a picture of green and silver 
that it would take a West Indian wilderness 
to rival. 

The Alamo, the last of the missions, and 
one never quite completed, is but a few steps 
from your inn, on a dusty plaza that is a re- 
proach to all San Antonio. Its wall is over- 
thrown and removed, its dormitories are piled 
with military stores, its battle-scarred front has 
• been revamped and repainted, and market 
carts roll to and fro on the spot where the 
flames ascended at the touch of the torch of 
an insolent foe over the fmieral pyre of heroes. 



But yet the Texan visits it as a shrine, and 
thrills with pride in a history that is more to^ 
him than all the Monmouths and Lexingtons, 
and Cowpens and Yorktowns of the Revolu- 
tion ; for, after all, Texas is a domain by it- 
self, with a past of its own, and although long^ 
a voluntary member of our federation, yet, 
like Hungary or like Scotland, it is hardly to 
be absorbed. 

The sword years since usurped the gown in 
men's thoughts when they spoke of the church 
of the Alamo, that fortress of the church mili- 
tant. Yet many a stout contest, to be sure, 
was waged in and around the little town of 
Bexar before the walls of the Alamo were 
ready for the banner poles from which such, 
various flags have tossed defiance : to-day the 
French, under St. Denis and La Harpe, driv- 
ing back into it all the Spaniards of the out- 
lying country, to-morrow the Comanches and 
the Tahuacanos harrying it, and even after it 
was garrisoned, the Apache riding boldly in and 
bidding the soldier there tether his horses. 
But with the building of the Alamo the strug- 
gles for its possession became fierce and fre- 
quent, and all the peaceful nestling beauty of 
the town was, until within the last thirty years, 
only the background for successive scenes of 
bloodshed. Now Salcedo and Herrera sur- 
render it to the Americans — that Salcedo 
whose keen insight saw the ruin of Spain in 
her colonies, and would have forbidden the 
birds to fly across our border and bring back 
any whisper of liberty ; now Elisondo threat- 
ens it, one sunrise, from the distant heights of 
the Alazan ; out of it eagerly marches a band to 
meet Arredondo at the Medina, and lay their 
bones to bleach on the old San Antonio road ; 
now, again, a raw army of 500 men hold 
Perfecto de Cos, the brother-in-law of Santa 
Anna, and his force of nearly three times their 
number, prisoners within the walls for two 
months, till the assault is ordered, when, while 
one party divert attention by an attack on the 
Alamo, from which, as well as from the cathe- 
dral, waves the merciless black and red flag, 
two columns march up Soledad and Acequia 
Streets, the one pushing through De la Garza's 
house, the other through Veramendi's — each 
house, with its walls three and fom- feet in 
thickness being a little fort — push slowly on 
day by day through the houses, not through 
the streets, which were raked by Mexican guns, 
through Navarro's house, into the priest's 
house, into the square, when the black and red 
flags come down and a white one goes up — a 
bitterly contested fight, where on the second 
day the magnificent Milan fell, long lying 
buried where he fell. Although, some years 
afterward, the ashes of this hero were removed 
to a cemetery, yet the scarcity of land in Texas 
recently created the necessity of running a 
highway through the cemetery ; and while he 
has his monument in the Capitol, yet Milan, 
who so loved Liberty for Liberty's sake — lay 
in canebrakes, slept in dungeons, starved and 
bled and died for her — lies to-day in an 



THE '■'STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SCNSET" ROC'TE. 



37 



unmarked grave where every hoof insults him. 
But the great fight of the Alamo, that which 
has immortalized it with the battles of the 
world, took place when Santa Anna advanced 
upon it with all the machinery of war at 
Alexico's command. From the outset there 
was no hope within the walls, and the little 
garrison there made up their minds to their 
fate ; indeed, one of them. Colonel Bonham, 
sent out to seek re-enforcements, came back 
alone, although he knew it was to die, hero- 
ically as Regulus returned to Carthage. There 
were 144 men in the Alamo ; Santa Anna's 
troops, at first estimated at 1500, were pre- 
sently increased to 4000 ; they were the flower 
of the Me.\ican soldiery, commanded by officers 
of matchless skill and daring, many of whom 
loathed the work required of them. But Santa 
Anna, who styled himself the Napoleon of the 
West, left no foes to rise behind him : his policy 
was the policy of extermination. The town of 
San Antonio was already his ; the blood -red 
flag flapped from the cathedral, and the fortress 
was summoned to siu-render and throw itself 
upon Mexican mercy. What that mercy was 
can be imagined from the subsequent fate of 
those who capitulated with the brave, im- 
petuous Fannin at Goliad under all the forms 
and articles of war, and with promise of speedy 
release, only to receive orders, one Sunday 
when they were singing 'Sweet Home,' to 
march out in double file under guard, suddenly 
halted when half a mile from the fort, the 
guard wheeling and firing upon tliem till they 
fell, betrayed and butchered in cold blood. 
'This day, Palm Sunday,' writes a Mexican 
■officer of the massacre, ' has been to me a day 
of most heart-felt sorrow. At six in the morn- 
ing the execution of 412 American prisoners 
was commenced, and continued till eight, when 
the last of the number was shot. At eleven 
commenced the operation of burning their 
bodies. . But what an a\\-ful scene did the field 
present, when the prisoners were executed and 
fell dead in heaps, and what spectator could 
view it without horror ! They were all young, 
the oldest not more than thirty, and of fine 
florid complexions. When the unfortunate 
youths were brought to the place of death, 
their lamentations, and the appeals which they 
uttered to Heaven in their own language, with 
extended arms, kneeling or prostrate on the 
earth, were such as might have caused the very 
stones to cry out in compassion.' 

Travis and his men had no njind for such 
mercy. Shut up in the Alamo, this was the 
proclamation of that superb leader : ' I am 
determined to sustain myself as long as pos- 
sible, and die like a soldier who never forgets 
what is due to his own honor and that of his 
country. Victory or death 1' 

This splendid death-cry was unheard. The 
call was neglected. No help came. Santa 
Anna surrounded the place on all sides with 
intrenched encampments, and kept up a can- 
nonade for ten days, many times attempting 
to scale the walls, but always repulsed with 



slaughter — 1500 of his men, it is said, falling 
before the unerring Texas rifle. At midnight 
of the thirteenth day the storming party was 
ordered to the assault for the last time, the 
reluctant infantry, pricked on by cavalry in 
the rear, amidst the roar of artillery and the 
volleys of musketry, the trumpet sounding the 
dreadful notes of the deqttelo, signifying no 
quarter. T\\ice they made the attempt in 
vain, and recoiled only to be urged on for the 
third time by the irresistible cordon behind 
them ; the thii-d time they mounted the walls 
and fell to their bloody work. It was short 
and terrible. As Travis stood on an angle of 
the northern wall, cheering the fearless spirits 
behind him, a ball struck his forehead, and he 
fell ; a Mexican officer rushed forward to dis- 
patch him, but he died on the point of Travis's 
sword as that hero breathed his last. And 
with that the indiscriminate slaughter began, 
man to man, of the little force that, worn out 




with the task of repelling attacks and manning 
works that required five times their number, 
with sleeplessness and thirst, and without time 
to reload their pieces, fought with their knives 
and the stocks of their rifles till no soul of the 
desperate band was left alive. Death and 
Santa Anna held the place. The Alcalde of 
San Antonio, summoned before the conqueror, 
pointed out to him Travis on the wall with the 
bullet in his forehead, Bowie butchered in his 
cell where he lay on his sick-bed, Evans shot 
in the act of blowing up the magazine, and 
David Crockett lying dead with a circle of his 
slaughtered foes around him. On the shaft 
erected to the heroes runs a legend wRose 
eloquence makes the heart stand still : ' Ther- 
mopylce had its messenger of defeat, the Alamo 
had none.' 

San Antonio has always had more or less to 
do with warlike operations. It is now again 
a military department, under the control of 



3« 



SA.V ANTOXIO IX REVIEW. 



General Orel, a brave and accomplished sol- 
dier, who from this station directs the frontier 
movements between those forts that constitute 
om- wall against the Mexican and the Apache ; 
and in the event of a new Mexican ^^'ar, it will 
be, as it is now, owing both to its situation and 
to its railway connection with the coast, the 
base of military operations. It has an arsenal, 
with picturesque grounds and buildings, on 
Flores Street, and a military depot on one of 
the side hills, whose stone walls inclose suffi- 
cient accommodation for all the stores needed 
in time of war, while its tower overlooks the 
country for many miles. There are several 
regiments permanently stationed here, while 
officers of other regiments are frequently going 
and coming to and from other posts ; and there 
is almost a pathetic contrast between the young 
officer with his unfleshed sword, who arrives 
smooth and fresh and fine in San Antonio, and 
the bronzed and roughened fellow who rides 
back from the frontier after a couple of years 
of service there. San Antonio is held to be 
quite a desirable post in the army, and the 
army Hfe adds a great deal to the pleasure of 
society in the place, with the high tone of its 
brilliant men and lovely women of varied expe- 
rience and graceful manners. But the society 
proper to the place itself is of a superior order, 
having something of the old Spanish base of 
courtesy and gravity with the polish born of 
contact with the world. For the San Antonians 
are by no means a stay-at-home people, nor do 
they confine their rambles to Mexico and the 
South ; you will find many of those in com- 
fortable circumstances who have made the 
European tour, and several who have crossed 
the ocean half a dozen times. Besides the 
school of the convent, there are several fine 
private schools, and there has long been a sys- 
tem of free schools in operation there, and 
those for whom these facilities are insufficient 
send their children sometimes to the North 
and sometimes to Europe. Of the young 
ladies there — who, by-the-way, are rather 
remarkable for their beauty — there are many 
who speak Spanish or German, and many are 
mistresses of four tongues ; while several of 
the matrons have an acquaintance with the 
dead languages which would allow them to fit 
their own boys for college, are well read in 
general literature too, and proud of the fact 
that Texas has no lack of literature of her own. 
A good deal of the quality of this society is 
owing to the fact that its members depend so 
largely for entertainment upon themselves, 
and while dancmg and music have received 
great attention, the art of conversation has 
had an unconscious cultivation that it does not 
so generally receive where opera and concert 
andltheatre spare the trouble. Yet this society 
is a growth of the present century. When the 
first American lady went to San Antonio, the 
Mexican women would beg permission to 
come in and admire her, and after sitting in 
silence a space, would go away lisping many 
thanks in their sweet syllables, and saying 



that she was very white and very lovely. 
This soft lisp of the Mexican, we may say, 
has somewhat infected the speech of the aver- 
age San Antonian, who calls acequias isakers, 
and speaks of the Salado and the Cibolo as 
the Slough and the Seewiller. Perhaps, also, 
he has been infected by something more than 
the Mexican lisp, in a certain enervation and 
lack of public spirit which causes him to allow 
his lovely town still to retain its fantastic 
charm, instead of joining the march of im- 
provement ; he does not wish to see things 
other than they always have been ; it is no 
paradox for him to say that although they be 
better, they are not so good. This is the 
square where Baron de Bastrop met Moses 
Austin turning away in disgrace and despair, 
and changed the fortunes of Texas ; here is 
the public crossing of the river where old 
Delgado's head was set up on a pole ; there is 
the brook that once ran red with the blood of 
Salcedo, Herrera, and twelve other good 
knights and true to pay for that head ; and 
yonder is the plaza where the famous Co- 
manche fight took place not forty years ago, 
when three-score Indian warriors, squaws and 
papooses came into San Antonio by appoint- 
ment to surrender their white prisoners, and, 
failing to keep faith, were told they should be 
held as hostages, upon which, in an instant, 
bows were strong and knives unsheathed, and 
in the fearfid struggle which followed, the 
squaws themselves fighting like tiger-cats, not 
one of the warriors was left alive. The old 
vSan Antonian wishes to keep these places un- 
altered, nor would he have the honored names 
of Manchaca, Navarro, Zavala, Seguin, and 
their sort, superseded by those of enterjDrising 
emigrants. From the point of view of the 
picturesque he is certainly right ; but other- 
wise one is reminded of the saying, now be- 
come a proverb, that the enemy of Texas is 
the old Texan. In spite of him, though, cer- 
tain changes will be wrought by time ; enter- 
prise has already crept into the place. It has 
a Historical Society and a Board of Trade ; 
it is talking of a new system of sewerage ; it 
has a gas house, much of whose gas is made 
of cotton-seed ; it has a railroad which has 
already improved its market, and it is bound 
to have others yet. 

There is a sort of romance attaching to the 
road that brings into daily communication 
with the world this city, one of that lonely 
trio, San Antonio, Nacogdoches, and Santa 
Fe, that for nearly two centuries have stood 
on their long untraveled trails, unknown and 
remote in their silent solitudes upon the out- 
posts. This road was built, single-handed, by 
its owner, Mr. Peirce, who is said to be the 
largest land-holder in the world. The bed in 
all its length is broad and firm, much of it 
made of the solid concrete deposits which are 
found on the line, the ties are laid with an 
exact precision, the rails are steel, and the 
bridges are of iron, with piers of solid masonry 
tlmt defy the floods. On the occasion of its 



THE ^'■STAR AND CRESCENT" AND ^'S INSET" ROUTE. 



39 



opening the San Antonians displayed a unique 
hospitality. To every guest that came over 
the road they gave literally the freedom of the 
city — the best they had to offer. Bed and 
board and fruit and flower were his ; any gar- 
den where he wished to stroll was his ; any 
carriage that he chose to stop upon the street 
and enter was his ; any bar across which he 
wished to drink — and their name is legion — 
any cigar he chose to take. For three days 
the three hundred guests were entertained as 
kii>gs and princes entertain, and were dis- 
missed without having been allowed to pay a 
bill. It has always been a long and fatiguing 
stage-coach ride thither ; but now the Texan 
is pouring in to visit its sanctuaries. He calls 
it almost invariably ' Santone,' and it is as full 
of novelty and delight to him as to the rest of 
the world. He goes to the Alamo and is 
weighed, congratulating himself on those that 
were weighed in the balance and not found 
wanting there once before ; he climbs to the 
top of the mission tower, and recalls yet earlier 
days ; he visits the springs ; and he spends his 
evening at Wolfram's Garden, where the cups 
of colored light, among all the greenery re- 
flected in the river, make an elfin place of 
strange contrast to those rude earlier scenes. 
He goes to the bee caves outside the city, to 
the bat caves some twenty miles away, where 
the scent of ammonia is stifling, the accumu- 
lations of guano are tremendous, and where 
the bats flying out just at sunset in long 
streams, like the never-ceasing smoke of a 
volcano, darken all the air, while the trans- 
parent membranes of their outstretched wings, 
catching the sidelong sunlight, make an unin- 
termitting dazzle of prismatic lustre. Or per- 
haps he is on the fortunate party that unearths 
the skeleton in armor of one of those Spanish 
knights sent out by Cortez to find the seven 
treasure cities and never returning — wonder- 
ful bronze armor, finished in the perfection of 
art. Within the town he sees the long emi- 
grant train threading the streets, with home- 
sick women and determined men ; he sees the 
great supply trains going out full and heavy 
to the markets of Saltillo, Monterey, and 
Chihuahua, and returning with hides and 
silver and wool ; he sees the hunters coming 
home laden with game, and the gay party of 
young roughs pushing forth, with their six- 
shooters on the saddle, to seek for the lost 
mines of San Saba, or for those of Uvalde and 
the remoter west. He sees, too, the group of 
Mexican officers meeting here, perhaps for 
refuge, perhaps for safer conspiracy, perhaps 
to act with that Escobedo who put an end to 
Maximilian's pretty romance, and served 
notice on Europe to send no more kings to 
America ; he sees the old banker, who, an 
American prisoner, has cleaned the streets of 
Mexico with ball and chain on his foot, the old 
physician who holds the diploma of all the 
learned societies in Europe, and who came to 
this country with that scion of royalty, the 
prince who colonized Xew Braunfels, bringijig 



with him letters from Humboldt ; or possibly 
he may meet a still stately dame who wears 
the diamonds given to her by her old partner 
in the dance, the pirate Lafitte, hero of Byron's 
' Corsair. ' He sees, with these, this and that 
veteran of Houston's men, still full of the old 
fire, as interesting to him, and almost as an- 
cient, as if just stepped out of Joshua's army 
before Jericho ; or, as possibly, one of the 
'bean men,' a sort of sacred character, being 
the survivor of the famous Mier expedition. 

But her own surrounding hills and prairies 
are wealth enough for her as it is. The yield 
of the cereals there is simply enormous. The 
corn is twice as high as your head in May, and 
the grass has twice been cut by that ; every 
known vegetable has long been in the market 
then. The sweet and luscious figs are ripe, 
and pears and apples, apricots, phmis and 




peaches, are ready to gather ; while, later in 
the year, bananas, pomegranates and persim- 
mons come in, and the pecans drop big and 
sweet as one finds them nowhere else. There 
are fields about San Antonio where $400 an 
acre have been realized out of sugar-cane, 
although that is an extremely exceptional 
yield, the proceeds being partly due to the 
sale of cane in the streets, it being a choice 
morsel in its season. Large quantities of it 
are fed to cattle also ; and for them, afe another 
delicacy, the prickly-pear is raked into heaps 
and scorched of its thorns by fire. The Spanish 
moss is found in immense quantities on the 
trees in certain portions of country round San 
Antonio, as well as all the way to the coast. 
It is an epiphyte, not a parasite, drawing its 
sustenance from the air, and not the tree, to 
which it does no injury ; and it is already 
forming a good branch of commerce, as, being 
well rotted and dried, it makes a valuable sub- 
stitute for curled hair in upholstery. Cotton, 
too, is almost equally prolific with everything 
else. In fact, there is nothing which the rich 
earth does not seem capable of producing, and 
producing at its best. As you see it freshly 
turned up, clean, dark, and glistening as 
though it held hidden sunbeams, it seems, 
according to the old saying, fairly good enough 
to eat. It would excuse the clay -eaters them- 
selves if it were on such substance that they fed ; 



40 



SAA' AKTOXIO IX REVIEW. 



and one would well wish that, having the tra- 
ditional peck of dirt to eat, it might be eaten in 
San Antonio. One does not wonder to see this 
sod break into blossom the day after it is cut. 

' A footfall there 
Suffices to upturn to the warm air 
Half-germinating spices : mere decay 
Produces richer life, and day by day 
New pollen on the lily petal grows, 
And still more labyrinthine buds the rose.' 

And San Antonio in this matter is but the type 
of all western Texas — a land of promise and 
■of plenty ; a land flowing in milk and honey 
(if, with the cattle roaming in multitudes, one 
were not obliged to use condensed milk in 
■one's coffee) ; a land where the vagrant can 
sleep in comfort under a tent in open air all 
"his lifetime, and may live in luxury, scarcely 
lifting his hands to labor, and where the ener- 
getic and intelligent bind fortune hand and 
foot, and compel her to their service. Nearly 
300,000 people entered it in the last year, and 
sought permanent homes ; many more, we 
understand, contemplate the same movement 
in the commg year. And their success is 
entirely in the measure of their endeavor ; for 
with eggs selling at from six to ten cents a 
dozen, and beef at from five to eight cents a 
pound, the cost of living is at its minimum. 
Rents are the only expensive item, and the 
■climate, as we have said, makes a tent suffi- 
cient shelter until a house can be built. And 
never was any place more full of opportunity 
to those who can seize occasion by the fore- 
lock — opportunity, too, quite outside of the 
farming industries. Wonderful water-powers 
that could spin and weave all the cotton on 
earth compass the cotton belt there, while the 
machinery of woolen mills covdd run without 
steam beside the ranch where the wool is 
shorn ; the huge heaps of bones, gathered 
from the prairies where the cattle of two hun- 
dred years have laid them, and that are 
transported at great cost, could be ground 
into dust, or made into combs and buttons on 
the spot ; acres of blooming wild white pop- 
pies tell ivhat is yet to be done there in opium ; 
tons of indigo are ready to the hand ; and the 
mesquite is able to tan the hides that travel 
some five thousand miles before they come 
back in saddles and harnesses and shoes. 



This mesquite, by the way, could be to the 
Texan almost as much as the palm is to the 
Arab — an object of pleasure to the eye of 
man. Cattle browse upon its foliage, sheep 
eagerly eat its teans ; its gnarled wood, when 
grown to any size, is as fine as old mahogany 
for furniture ; its abundant gum is the gum- 
arabic of the East, and its bark tans leather 
as quickly and thoroughly as any other sub- 
stance known. Forbidden by Spain, in that 
narrow policy which has reacted in ruin on 
herself, to grow flax, hemp, saffron, olives, 
grapes and mulberries, the country blossoms 
with them all to-day. And, in truth, there is 
nothing which she does not bring forth, from 
the wines of El Paso to the camels raised ana 
sold to traveling menageries, for confiding 
parents to exhibit to marveling children as the 
ship of the desert, and the product of the 
Scriptural East. 

It is the Scriptural East that the region 
round about San Antonio, and all this west- 
ern Texas, indeed, constantly presents to 
the mind in the lay of the land and all its 
characteristics. The irrigating ditches, the 
shepherds and their flocks, the cattle on a 
thousand hills, the wild asses snuffing the 
breeze, the wheat, the vineyard, the lilies 
of the field, the smell of the grape, the voice 
of the turtle-dove, the fig and the pomegranate 
— they are all there ; the very atmosphere, 
and the high clear heavens recall the skies 
of Palestine ; one feels what the burden 
and heat of the day means, and recalls the 
Lord walking in His garden in the cool of 
the evening. At every step some mem- 
ory or association concerning the Holy Land 
arises ; and the dweller, sitting on his gal- 
lery, and overlooking his green pastures, 
as the sweet and sudden dusk follows sunset 
without twilight there, can well give thanks, 
saying, ' For the Lord thy God bringeth 
thee into a good land, a land of brooks of wa- 
ter, of fountains and depths that spring out of 
valleys and hills ; a land of wheat, and barley, 
and vines, and fig-trees, and pomegranates ; 
a land of oil olive, and honey ; a land wherein 
thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou 
shalt not lack anything in it ; a land whose 
stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou 
mayest dig brass.' " 




THE '^STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AXD ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 



41 



SAN ANTONIO OF TO-DAY. 



As the tourist or invalid, perhaps, desires 
some description of San Antonio's new 
features, and, may be, Hkes to know also some- 
thing of rambles of former times in a stage- 
coach or in a prairie schooner, we will give 
some fiu-ther synopsis of such rambles made 
very recently, and of such made in former 
years. 

A stage ride from San Antonio to Austin 
was considered one of the most romantic in 
western Texas, and in fact, by being favored 
with a comfortable seat beside the driver, it 
was a rare treat. We will, in our limited 
space, only speak of a drive from San Antonio 
to the Comal Springs, near New Braunfels. 

One b.-autiful morning we take our place 
beside the driver of the San Antonio stage, on 
the high box-seat, perched above four fine 
and strong horses, in front of the Menger 
House. The driver cracks his long whip, and 
we dash by quaint stone houses, pass the 
Government Depot, climb a hill, and get some 
glimpses of the dear old city, encircled by the 
richly tree-bordered river ; in the dim distance 
some missions peep out between pecan groves ; 
to the left we observe a long chain of the Gua- 
dalupe Mountains, and are on the hard, white, 
glistening highway. 

Fording the Saluda Creek, we come upon 
something of a plateau, overgrown with nutri- 
tious pasturage grass and shaded by the scant 
foliage of numberless mesquite orchards, that 
crowd each other on either side of the road. 
Here a dilapidated INIexican hut varies the 
scene, and further on a b^-autiful farm-house, 
with its surroundings indicative of thrift and 
prosperity, pleases the eye ; anon a prairie, 
whereon graze the cattle in innumerable 
herds, and where the frolicsome calf disports 
himself \\'\\.\\ his playmate in the presence of a 
sleepy mother ruminating upon the pickings 
of the past feed time. In the distance a couple 
of cow-boys — one with his Mexican sombrero 
and flashy ornaments, the other with slouch 
hat and boot-legs over his pants — pursue a 
stray member of the herd and bring it within 
bounds. 

Overhead the bright blue sky reaches from 
horizon to horizon, and the pure atmosphere ' 
all around fills the lungs at every inhalation 
with the essence of eternal youth. Onward 
we whirl, passing low stone fences that inclose 
cultivated fields and growing crops ; these 
marks of the husbandman indicate the prox- 
imity of a streamlet, on the banks of which 
nature has planted a more fertile soil. In its 
crystal depths our horses slake their thirst, 








and we ascend again a still higher elevation 
of table-land. From here, as by magic, the 
beautiful little city of New Braunfels, nestled 
in the bosom of the rich valley of the Comal 
River, bursts upon our view. As we draw 
near, the increased number of little homes 
betoken the vicinity of a manufacturing town, 
and a growing industry among the settlers. 

For a moment we lose sight of the city and 
are buried in the dense shades of a live-oak, 
where the great branches of the trees reach 
out their arms seemingly to support the long 



0t' 

rolls of hanging moss, almost sweeping the 
groimd as the breeze stirs among green leaves. 
Next, on the left, the white rock'foundations, 
in contrast to a rich growth of green cedars, 
make a beautiful picture of wild nature's paint- 
ing. To the right the hand of man paints a 
rural picture with all the colors of incipient, 
progressing and perfected agriculture. 

The yard, the garden, the field are all there 
tilled by the careful hand and hoe, or by the 
brawny muscle and sharp ploughshare A 
fair maiden with flaxen hair and bright blue 
eyes looks up from her wi_>rk among the rose 
bushes as we pass, and seems not only queen 
of that domain, but queen of health, beauty 
and happiness. We imagined she almost 
smiled as we passed on to the town of New 
Braunfels, the oldest settlement in that section, 
it having been the home of German settlers as 
early as 1S54. There they set foot, and despite 
the hardships of pioneer life, privations of 
explorers and frequent battlings with Indians, 
held, and will ever hold, a firm footing on 
that now prospering land. Having safelv 
landed in town, we met at the hotel Mr. Landa, 
whom we found to be an elegant, educated and 
refined gentleman and the fortunate owner of 
Comal Springs. Resting awhile we accepted 
an invitation from him to visit these springs. 
Seated in an open landau behind a fine and 
spirited pair of dark bays, we drive through 
the principal streets and see on every hand 



42 



S.4.V AXTONIO OF TO-DAY. 



groups of healthy looking children indulging in 
their more or less athletic sports. Now and 
then the graceful movement and elastic step of 
a fair-haired German lassie attracts the eye, 
while the clear ring of her sweet voice speaks 
to the ear in prophetic tones of the generations 
to come and the great people that are yet to 
cover the lands of this great state. The 
town is laid out with much regularity, giving 
each house ample room for a vegetable or 
flower garden. The Germans having a pecu- 
liar fondness for flowers did not forget to leave 
space for the cultivation of roses, pinks, 
resedas, violets, forget-me-nots and the many 
other fragrant flowers that flourish here. 
Driving from the city we descend a small 
decline and cross one of the many tributaries 
of the Comal. To the right a miniature 
Niagara tumbling over the rocks conveys to 
your mind a small idea of the immense water 
power confined within the banks of this river. 
Ascending we pass Landa's grist mill, built of 
stone, just above which the waters, pent up 
by the dam, form a beautiful lakelet of crystal- 
clear water. Around its borders, and hanging 
over its limpid depths, water lilies, the giant 
leaves of the caladium and many other 
aqtiatic plants are to be seen in the wildest 
profusion and of the most luxuriant growth. 
Here we dismount, and on a rustic foot-bridge 
made of unsawn forest saplings, cross to an 
island whereon is a vineyard of the most lus- 
cious grapes to be found anywhere. Side by 
side with the vines, are fig-trees loaded down 
with an abundant crop of that most delicious 
fruit. 

From this garden-island, from this lap of 
luxury, we take our departure in a small 
canoe and skim over the placid surface of the 
Comal, with rich wreaths of aquatic plants 
and tropical flowers clustering along either 
margin and the dense foliage of giant forest 
trees clasping hands above the silvery band 
that steals its way about their roots, until 
we re-enter the carriage to drive past spring 
after spring of bubbling water, throwing out 
its share of the immense supply that forms this 
beautiful river of which we write. As we 
travel there stretches behind us one of the 
most beautiful and sublime landscapes that the 
pen of poet or novelist ever described, or the 
brush of painter pictured. Not the celebrated 
vale of Tempe, nor any of the immortal valleys 
of the Orient equal this paradise of the wes- 
tern world . After having ridden some distance 
we again take it afoot and cross once more to 
our little insular Eden, from whence in another 
direction is seen the loveliest picture of nature 
that enchanted the human eye. The undis- 
turbed waters stretch away as far as the eye 
can reach, and in their shallows the white 
cranes wade and the moss dips to the water's 
surface from the overreaching boughs. A 
little way off" the dark green cedars spring 
up from the white limestone rocks, and all are 
reflected from the glassy mirror that trails 
beneath them. We were fain to exclaim 



' ' Let us rest here forever ! ' ' Through a 
picturesque glen we again find our carriage 
and drive to the top of some mountainous 
bluffs where begins a table-land more beauti- 
fid than that seen on the road from San 
Antonio. It is covered with rich grass, and 
numberless clumps of trees are interspersed 
with meadows replete with the rarest flowers. 
In the distance the blue mountain ridges loom 
up, deepening their tints as they recede, and 
valley after valley intervenes. Evening has 
now nearly gone ; and as the sun, casting his 
farewell gleams into every nook and corner of 
the landscape, and fringing every cloud with 
his silvery lining, disappears behind the west- 
ern horizon, a scene of grandeur is presented 
that beggars all description. 

San Antonio is watered by two beautiful 
streams, the San Antonio and the San Pedro, 
the former running directly through the heart 
of the city. It is a crystal-clear, swift current, 
of a deep bluish hue ; and although flowing in 
a channel not very wide, its banks are pic- 
turesque and overhung by beautiful foliage 
that in some places (often in the middle of the 
town) overarch the entire stream. Passing 
under large stone bridges and under newly 
built iron bridges, it is one of the loveliest pos- 
sible water streets, and is something original 
and unique, to be found nowhere else. The 
flights of stone steps, leading to cozy bath- 
houses and thence into the comfortable villas, 
reminds one of Venetian canals. Enchanting 
gardens touch the borders of this river, and 
little skiffs are used in making neighborly 
visits. The residences on Flores Street are all 
completely embowered in shrubbery. Since 
1877 many additions have been made to the 
building list of 1S76, chiefly on Main Street ; 
they are notable for the decided architectural 
improvement and the superiority of the building 
material used. 

The headquarters of the general command- 
ing the Department of Texas are located in a 
large stone building two stories in height, on 
Government Hill, near the new Government 
depot, which is situated upon a splendid eleva- 
tion northeast of the city, with a beautiful view 
of the town, commanding both banks of the 
San Antonio, with all the missions, and the 
range of hills semicircling the city with a 
gradual elevation of 200 to 300 feet. All the 
grounds comprise 216 acres, with four main 
buildings constructed of stone, each 624 feet in 
length. The offices of the different depart- 
ments are perfect and complete in every re- 
spect, and are very elegantly furnished. The 
building to the west is for storage of all kinds ; 
that upon the east for flour ; upon the north 
for wagon, blacksmith and repair shops, etc. 
In the centre is a tower built of stone, 90 
feet in height, a landmark, and one that com- 
mands a panorama rarely to be seen. To the 
northwest are corrals, with buildings for all 
domestic purposes, and in regard to combin- 
ing the useful and convenient no other military 
post in the state is its equal. Plazas, parks. 



THE ''STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 43 




MISSION SAN JOSE. 



44 



SAN ANTONIO OF TO-DAY. 



churches, missions, etc., are already described. 
In regard to business houses, information can 
be found in the newspapers of this city, which 
are ably conducted and have a leading in- 
fluence in this part of the state. The Express 
is published daily and weekly ; the Herald, 
also, is published both daily and weekly, and 
last but not least, the Freie Presse, a German 
paper, the very best of its kind in the state. 
The leading hotels are the Menger, Maverick, 
the Central House, Hord's Hotel, and the 
Vance House. Private boarding-houses with 
all accommodations can be easily secured. 
Places of amusement are few, but with the 
growth of the city, suitable investments will 
doubtless be made. At present only three 
halls are in use : the Alamo Literary Associa- 
tion, the Casino (German), Turner and the 
Music Hall above Schalz's summer garden. 

The markets, mentioned elsewhere, present 
scenes imlike those in any other city in the 
United States, and remind the curious looker- 
on of the customs of an old Spanish town. 

Concerning the public and private schools 
of San Antonio, we can state that they do 
great credit to the city, being amply provided 
for by the State School Fund, and receiving be- 
sides a liberal share of the Peabody and private 
endowments. Five public schools and build- 
ings ; eight private and select schools ; one 
Catholic college ; one convent, and one Eng- 
lish and German academy (the last being one 
of the best conducted schools in Texas), con- 
stitute vSan Antonio's educational advantages. 
The various associations are. Masonic, Odd 
Fellows, Knights of Pythias, and other benev- 
olent orders ; a German casino, with a beau- 
tiful theatre and concert hall, a Turn Verein, 
an association of Mexican war veterans, an 
Agricultural, Stock and Industrial Association 
and two well-organized singing clubs (German). 
Carriages, street cars and other means of 
transportation are convenient for the many 
beautiful drives or excursions to the missions 
and parks near the city. Objects of interest 
can be found everywhere in this old town ; 
and the superior character and comfort of 
nearly an hundred licensed carriages, afford 
to the visitor and invalid a necessary luxury, 
which should be highly appreciated, as many 
other winter resorts are often lacking in such 
accommodations. 

The water supply of San Antonio is the 
very best in the state. F>om the earliest set- 
tlement of the quahit town, the San Antonio 
and San Pedro springs and rivers have been 
the only sources of water supply for house- 
hold and gardening purposes. The . rapid 
growth of the city being foreseen, it was de- 
cided to erect a system of water-works, using 
the head-springs of the San Antonio River to 
supply the city with an abundance of pure 
water for fire protection, sanitary, public and 
domestic purposes ; these works are now 
completed. The head-force raises the water, 
which is of the purest kind, to a height of 
twenty-four feet, from whence it is forced by 



machinery to the height of eighty-five feet into 
the receiving reservoir. This reservoir is 
erected upon a space of six acres, known as 
the City Rock Quarries, having a capacity of 
five million gallons. Not far from these water- 
works are the sources of the San Antonio. 
In no other place is the river so supremely 
beautiful as at its head-waters, on the high 
plateau at the foot of the Guadalupe range ; 
here it breaks out from innumerable springs, 
which at once form themselves into a beautiful 
stream, having its banks ornamented with a 
wealth of blossoms. Mr. Brackenridge, who 
purchased the estate of several hundred acres 
containing this lovely natural park lying 
along the base of the mountains, has thrown 
a protecting stone wall around it to prevent 
abuses, but has kindly given one or two days 
each week to those who desire to visit these most 
interesting and picturesque grounds, the pos- 
session of which an English lord might envy 
him. As some one well says in regard to the 
San Antonio: "The stream is a delicious 
poem, written in water on the loveliest of river- 
beds, from which mosses, ferns, dreamiest 
green and painted crimson, rich opalescent 
and strong golden hues peep out. Every few 
rods there is a lovely waterscape — a painting 
in miniature." Butterflies of rare beauty and 
other brilliant winged insects, swarm from 
flower to flower, large-leaved bananas over- 
shadow a part of the springs, and groups of 
other beautiful water-plants lend an enchanting 
verdure to the cool banks. Noble pecans, 
beautiful oaks, ashes and shrubs of every de- 
scription, "stand like Druids of old," around 
these fairy -like waters, not only draped with 
the historic moss, but festooned with gala-vines, 
with blooms of red, white and blue, reflecting 
themselves in the placid pools so pure, so deep 
and crystal-clear to the very bottom. It is 
the desire of many prominent citizens to pur- 
chase this splendid park for the city, to be 
used by the public, and Mr. Brackenridge is 
willing to part with it for the sake of the 
great general benefit that will arise from 
its proper use. The San Pedro is also a 
clear and charming stream. All its sources 
are confined to the northern border of the 
city in the enclosure of San Pedro Park, 
easily reached by the street cars. This park 
is a favorite public resort ; there are held fes- 
tivals, illuminations, boating parties on the 
lovely lakelets, picnics, concerts, hops, fairs, 
etc. The San Pedro is utilized to irrigate a 
large portion of the city, and from its very 
source becomes a great benefactor, as is its 
noble companion stream, the San Antonio. 
Within the corporate limits the San Pedro 
produces, by a system of irrigation, a luxur- 
iant growth of trees and brilliant as well as 
fragrant flowers in. the adjoining gardens. 
Tropical blossoms, and beautiful cypresses, 
weeping willows and other shade-trees with 
variously tinted foliage, delight the eye on 
every side, and mark with beauty the course 
of the silver stream. 



THE ^^6TAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ^'•SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



45 



SAN ANTONIO AS A WINTER RESORT. 



So much has been said and written over and 
over again in regard to San Antonio and 
its highlands, its unsurpassed climate, so heal- 
ing and soothing to the invahd, that we can only 
recapitulate some general remarks by expe- 
rienced observers, in order not to lengthen 
this pamphlet too much ; and we will bring it 
to a close with some gen- 
eral hints to invalids, as 
well as to the tourist or 
sportsman, and by giving 
some description of the Sun- 
set Route's Pacific Exten- 
sion and its adjacent win- 
ter resorts. 

Thousands who have the 
means wherewith to travel 
— especially those residing 
in the cold climates of the 
North and East, and who 
wish to avoid the extreme 
winters, lasting about seven 
months of the year — and 
who are in search of a 
more genial clime, would 
do well to visit this section. 
Many valuable lives can 
thus be saved and many 
prolonged. Those suffering 
with pulmonary affections, 
rheumatism or kindred in- 
firmities, will be cured or 
relieved by spending the 
winter months in San An- 
tonio or its vicinity. The 
elevation of San Antonio 
is 625 feet above the sea. 
Its atmosphere is as pure 
and balmy as that of Italy ; 
its climate is dry and in- 
vigorating ; its numerous 
springs are pure and spark- 
ling; summer flowers bloom 
in the gardens during the 
winter ; in and about the 
city are easy and delight- 
ful drives ; hotels and pri- 
vate residences offer all 
the conveniences and luxuries that are found 
anywhere, either North or East. The medical 
faculty, noted for their science and high attain- 
ments, are ever ready to help and to advise. 
It 15 an invariable experience of those M'ho go 
to San Antonio from the heavy and moist 
atmospheres of the Mississippi valley, the 
marshy swamps of Florida and Cuba, or the 
Atlantic coast, that they experience a sense of 



exhilaration and buoyancy while inhaling the 
strengthening, electrical and balmy atmos- 
phere in this western Paradise, unequaled in 
climate throughout the United States. Those 
sceptical ones, who are desirous of being con- 
vinced of the fact that the climate of western 
Texas is equal in salubrity and healthfulness to 




DOORWAY OF SAN JOSE MISSION. 



any in the world, have only to consult the 
United States Census Reports of the Signal 
Service Observations, or any scientific work on 
climatology ; an honest perusal of these would 
certainly satisfy the most incredulous. We give 
the mean standard thermometer as observed 
for the six cold months: November 58.73, 
December 55.76, January 49.59, February 
58.72, March 64.50 and April 67.67 degrees. 



46 



SAA' ANTONIO AS A WINTER RESORT. 



It is an interesting fact that the inhabitants 
of western Texas are free from pulmonary 
diseases ; a truth noticed even in its first set- 
tlement in the seventeenth century. No such 
diseases can originate in that section of the 
state, while many who go there suffering from 
lung affections, often experience a perfect cure 
or prolong their lives for years in comfort. 
Marked instances of this have become widely 
known, and the General Passenger Depart- 
ment will with pleasure answer any questions 
in regard to persons who have been thus al- 
most miraculously cured, giving names and 
address of ladies and gentlemen of wealth and 
culture. 

It is further stated that invalids in an ad- 
vanced stage of consumption will find almost 
any desired temperature near San Antonio, 
securing a beneficial change by going to higher 
altitudes, so easily reached by the extension of 
the Sunset Route. Such health-seekers will 
receive from the medical practitioners of San 
Antonio the most reliable and trustworthy ad- 
vice. 

Many an invalid in the first stages of lung 
disease would be cured by camp life, by sleep- 
ing in a tent, and pursuing out-door sports ; 
and many who make an experiment of frontier 
life soon delight in their wild freedom, and 
learn to enjoy a venison steak, a trout, a wild 
turkey, a partridge or prairie chicken, simply 
prepared by the camp fire, in preference to all 
the luxurious dishes by any "cordon bleu." 
The reward for such a hardy experiment is 
almost invariably a recovery of strength ; and 
the bloom of youth returns with the bronzed 
cheek and health with the muscular chest and 
clear eye. The following extracts from a pa- 
per read at the ninth annual session of the Tex- 
as State Medical Association, by Dr. J. B. 
Robertson, one of the oldest and most highly 
esteemed physicians in the state, will not fail 
to impress the reader favorably : 

' ' That portion of western and southwestern 
Texas lying west of the 98th meridian of longi- 
tude, and north of the 29th degree of latitude, 
has an elevation above the sea, begintiing fifty 
miles south of San Antonio, of 500 feet, and 
gradually rising as the line is traced north 
to 2000 feet. This region is drained by the 
following rivers and their numerous tributaries: 
Brazos, Colorado, Guadalupe, San Antonio, 
Nueces and Rio Grande, all of which find 
their outlets into the Gulf of Mexico. The 
rapidly decreasing elevation of the country 
through which these streams pass in their 
course to the sea, secures to the section named 
the most perfect and thorough drainage. In 
addition to this fact, this vast area of territory 
is entirely free from ponds, marshes, lakes or 
stagnant bodies of water, to disturb with their 
contaminating effluvia the purity of the at- 
mosphere. Here are also found the principal 
mountain ranges, of which the Guadalupe is 
the largest, and has the greatest elevation. 
These mountains, with their intervening val- 
leys and plains, with their springs of pure and 



limpid water — which, for beauty and pic- 
turesqueness are rarely equaled and never 
surpassed — are beginning to attract the atten- 
tion of the professional man in search of a 
locality for the climatic treatment of diseases 
of respiratory organs, especially phthisis. 

"It is a source of much regret that I have 
not been able to get satisfactory reports of the 
range of the thermometer and the barometer, 
with the humidity of the atmosphere. I am 
only able to give the mean temperature for 
the seasons and year (means obtained from six 
years' observation at San Antonio) ending with 
the year 1875, which is : 

Spring, . . . 69.94 deg. 

vSummer, . . . 85.56 " 

Autumn, . . . 68.95 " 

Winter, . . . 52.94 " 

For the whole year, . 68.85 " 

' ' The pressure of vapor, its weight, the ab- 
solute humidity, have, as far as I know, never 
been measured, but the observations of daily 
life, by all who have lived in any part of this 
section or traveled through it, concur in at- 
testing the astonishing rapidity with which 
the roads dry after a fall of rain; and the per- 
fect preservation of meats for days, hanging 
in the open air, indicate unmistakably a small 
amount of moisture suspended in the air. 

" The beneficial effects of the climate, in the 
area treated of, is not simply a matter of 
opinion, on the part of the writer, on purely 
theoretical grounds. During a practice of 
over thirty years in central Texas he has 
seen many patients sent there with clearly 
marked indications of consumption, and at a 
time in the history of the coimtry when such 
patients had to rely almost entirely upon the 
climate for the benefit they received. In all 
cases the change gave marked relief, with, he 
believes, a prolongation of life for years with 
some and a perfect cure with others." 

The desire for winter resorts has become 
so widespread throughout the North and East 
that the superiority of western Texas in regard 
to climate will not fail to attract attention. 

MEDINA COUNTY. 

Situated west of Bexar County, on the 22d 
degree of longitude and between the 29th and 
30th parallels of latitude, this county has an 
area of 1304 square miles, and a population of 
about 5000. The surface of the county is a 
somewhat elevated and undulating prairie, 
in the region of the finest stock-raising 
country in Texas, and has, like Bexar County, 
perpetual pastures of the finest and most nutri- 
tious grasses, with an abundant supply of clear 
and running water, rendering it a magnificent 
grazing country, where stock thrive and fatten 
throughout the year. The Medina. River, a 
branch of the San Antonio River (crossed by 
the railroad over a fine bridge), with high 
banks overhung by the foliage of majestic 
trees, has beautiful landscape scenery. This 
river takes its course throusrh the eastern sec- 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 47 




VIEW ON HEADWATERS OF THE SAN ANTONIO. 



48 



UVALDE COUXTY. 



tion, while the Quihi, Chacon, Hondo, Verde, 
Geronimo, Ranchero and Black Seco Creeks 
flow through other sections of the county. 

The soils are diversified and range in char- 
acter from the rich bottom-land, well tim- 
bered along the margins of the streams, to the 
lighter soils of the uplands. About one-eighth 
of the county is timbered with the several 
varieties found in this section of the state, 
post-oak predominating, and upon the prairies 
the mesquite abounds. 

Farmers produce the usual crops in this sec- 
tion — cotton, corn and the smaller grains, all 
kinds of vegetables and some fruits, especially 
the grape, which is abundant. Sheep hus- 
bandry is particularly profitable in this county, 
and this industry is increasing very rapidly. 
The Sunset Route, traversing the county, affords 
excellent facilities for transportation of surplus 
productions and live stock to the best markets 
in the country. The building of this road 
through the county has added largely to its 
wealth and population ; and as the people 
are progressive, intelligent and hospitable 
they receive a large accession from the con- 
stant flow of immigration. Good lands can 
be bought at from $i to $5 per acre upon 
favorable terms, and the advantages offered by 
this county to industrious laborers and farmers 
are many and hardly excelled in any other 
section of the state. There is also an abun- 
dance of fine stone for building purposes, which 
can be quarried at a moderate cost. 

A railroad branch from the main line will 
soon reach Castroville, only four miles, the 
county seat. This town is situated in a beauti- 
ful valley twenty-five miles west from San 
Antonio. It was settled in 1844 by French 
and German immigrants under the direction 
of Henry Castro. The dwellings, hotels, 
churches and business places of Castroville are 
mainly constructed of stone. It has a saw- 
mill, two grist-mills, Protestant and Catholic 
churches and free schools. As the elevation 
of this lovely city is over 500 feet, and other 
sections near by 700 feet above the level of the 
gulf, from which it receives the cooling breezes 
from the south, the climate is delightful and 
charming ; and as the health of the place is 
unexcelled, the mean temperature being about 
68 degrees, it will become a favorite winter 
resort for invalids. The tourist and hunter 
find also all accommodations for their rambles, 
and can readily obtain an invitation to accom- 
pany the hardy Texans upon their annual 
"rounding up," which occurs in the early 
summer, when all the cattle upon a range are 
brought together, the calves marked and 
branded and the selections made for market. 

Traveling in west-bound trains one often 
notes some consumptive who is journeying 
toward the dry plains to rough it for a while, 
with hope and good prospect of regaining his 
health. Many others have sought these prair- 
ies, from the close confinement of mercantile 
life, to renew failing health and what medicine 
could not he-al,_ and were cured by the pure 



atmosphere ; and ranches are full of brown 
and bearded men, in full possession of strength, 
who came to this locality under such conditions 
as mentioned above. Since the Sunset Route 
traverses this county its cars are often crowded 
with excursionists from San Antonio to various 
places along the road. Medina Park, not 
many miles from Castroville and about twenty 
miles from San Antonio, has become a popular 
place of amusement ; entire families bring tents 
and camping outfits, and enjoy themselves in 
a thousand pleasant ways, often remaining 
several days, and returning to the daily routine 
of life with the determination to revisit this 
delightful park. It is situated on a plateau 
near the Medina River, shaded by huge oaks 
that are covered with natural swings of mus- 
tang vines, so inviting to childish imaginations. 
A spacious pavilion has been recently erected 
here by the company, besides many comfort- 
able cottages. Rustic benches and chairs in 
natural arbors invite to rest, and a band of 
music frequently enlivens the scene \\ith the 
bugle-call to the dance. 

Along the line new places of future import- 
ance are being laid out, in towns such as 
Lacoste, Summit, Hondo City and D'Hanis. 
Other places in the county are growing and 
prospering, as Quihi, New Fountain, Sico, 
Francisco, Perez and others ; all thriving little 
villages, supplied with churches and having 
excellent educational advantages. 

UVALDE COUNTY. 

From Medina the "Sunset" passes into this 
remarkable county, of which, up to the present 
tune, very little has been written, although it 
is known to have strong attractions for the 
health-seeker, tourist, capitalist, laborer and 
sportsman. A volume might be filled with 
the beauties, grandeur and wild scenery of 
the Nueces Mountains alone. This county, 
formerly known as Rio Brava, the old Spanish 
name, is situated in southwestern Texas, on 
the 23d degree of longitude west from Wash- 
ington, and between the 29th and 30th parallels 
of north latitude. It contains 1300 square 
miles, with a population of four thousand, 
which is constantly increasing, and is composed 
of Americans and Mexicans, in the proportion 
of two of the former to one of the latter. 

The watercourses all take their rise among 
the heights in the northern part of the county, 
and flow in a southerly direction, dividing them- 
selves pretty equally throughout the county. 
The Sabinal River is one of the chief streams 
and has fertile land extending for many miles 
on either side. Its waters are beautiful, clear 
and cool, and are inhabited by the finest game- 
fish in the land, which can be caught in great 
abundance. The attention of the explorer 
upon entering this rich valley is at once at- 
tracted by the numerous and large groves of 
immense cypress to be found along the river 
borders. These giants of the forests, judging 
from their huge proportions, are probably the 
oldest m the land and the most serviceable for 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



49 



the uses of civilization. One may pass a life 
time in travel and not find anywhere their equal 
in size. This river, the Sabinal, is principally 
formed by Blanchero, Turkey, Canon and 
Aii-Flaco Creeks, which, from their sinuous 
courses, like the river, render irrigation easy, 
and the raising of crops not a matter of chance, 
but a certainty. 

Sabinal, which takes its name from the 
river, is a station seventy-one miles from San 
Antonio on the Sunset Route, and is easily ac- 
cessible from the farming districts. Its cen- 
tral location and accessibility with regard to 
the agricultural interests, render its rapid 
growth and prosperity fixed facts. It is the 
centre through which all of the exports and 
imports will pass. The whole length of this 
river valley, from the northern boundary to 
the south line of the county, can be ren- 
dered, by irrigation, one ever-blooming garden 
spot. Near the southern border of the coun- 
ty, this stream empties into the Rio Frio, a 
somewhat larger river and one possessed of 
the same valuable characteristics, but on a 
much larger scale. On the latter river is 
Chatfield, another station, peculiarly fitted for 
the shipment and handling of stock from the 
extensive ranges in that section. These two 
stations place every farmer and stock-raiser 
in the county in easy and quick connection by 
rail with the great trade centres of the South 
and West. Next to the agricultural and pas- 
toral advantages above mentioned, may be 
noticed the beautiful scenery and landscapes 
presented on every side to the passenger look- 
ing from the window of a parlor car as it 
glides along over a new and fine steel rail 
track. These two rivers and the beautiful 
Rio Leona, with their numerous tributaries, 
formed from never-failing springs, aft'ord a 
copious water supply. But to improve on 
nature and increase this abimdance, a sirong 
company has been formed in New York for 
the purpose of cutting a canal for irrigating 
purposes, from a point twenty miles northwest 
of Uvalde, on the Nueces River, to a designated 
point on the Leona. This canal, while it will 
cross only about twelve miles of country, will 
bring about 30.000 acres of valuable land sub- 
ject to irrigation and increase the certainty of 
raising good crops. The fall of the country 
and the inexhaustible supply of water afforded 
by the Nueces, will make this canal equal to a 
natural river, rushing through the country and 
distributing its benefits without stint and alike 
to all settlers on its borders. 

Uvalde, the county seat, a short distance 
from the railroad and about ninety-three miles 
from San Antonio, is situated on a romantic 
lakelet '\x\ the southern central portion of the 
county. It is the largest town in the county, 
having about 1200 Americans and 300 Mexi- 
cans within its corporate limits. This forms 
the chief point of commercial importance in 
this section, and promises to reach metropolitan 
proportions in the course of a few years. A 
large and commodious hotel has just been fin- 



ished for the special accommodation of tour- 
ists, invalids and trading men from the in- 
terior. Even this with the other hotel accom- 
modations is hardly equal to the demand of 
the public. There are several wholesale busi- 
ness houses there, doing a business that 
amounts to $200,000 per annum. Farmers, 
stockmen and rancheros from all parts of the 
country deal with merchants here, and through 
them reach the greater cities. The town is 
prettily and tastily laid out on the hanks of the 
limpid Leona, which river, by a curious freak, 
forms a lovely lakelet about a mile frc^n 
town. Of this we will speak more at length 
hereafter. 

The numerous and thick groves of live-oak, 
post-oak, hackberry and pecan lend much to 
the other natural attractions of the place, and 




^'*4#^!''?'<:, 



go far, with the extraordinary beauties of the 
river and its rugged banks, to make a perfect 
paradise for the invalid and seeker after health 
and recreation. 

This place, being situated on the road that 
has been for many years past the great high- 
way for traffic between the more thickly settled 
sections of Texas and northwestern Mexico 
with its numerous towns, is frequently filled 
with large wagon trains or long files of pack- 
mules carrying merchandise and products 
and is thus made the scene of novel and in- 
teresting sights. Its near proximity to the 
Nueces River forms another point of interest, 
as it makes practicable a trip through this 
wild, romantic and unsettled region, where we 
find the wild turkey, Mexican lion, black- tail 
deer, mountain sheep occasionally, and even 
buffalo. 

In the Nueces range of mountains, higher up 
in the county, but not out of reach ot this 
town, are vast mineral resources that spme 



5° 



KINNEY, CROCKETT AXD ZAVALLA COUNTIES. 



day will be developed and will form a source 
of untold wealth to this section. There is also 
an ample supply of timber for domestic and 
agricultural purposes. The topography of this 
district is generally broken and diversified, 
but its elevated nature renders this a most 
excellent resort for invalids. This dry, bracing 
air of a thousand feet above the level of the sea 
is pronounced a panacea for all pulmonary dis- 
eases, even though they be in a most advanced 
stage. Among the very hills nature has placed 
a wonderfully beautiful lake, filled it with the 
finest table- fish in the world and bordered 
it with forest trees of the densest foliage. It is 
supplied by inniunerable subterranean springs 
that boil out from the various strata of lime- 
stone that form the basin. The depth in 
places is an hundred feet, and the water is so 
clear that white rock nearly fifty feet down can 
be clearly seen. Fish swnnming far below tlie 
surface are almost as distinctly visible as birds 
flying in the open air. Years ago Indians of 
iTiany tinbes made this romantic reti-eat their 
camping-ground. Here in their wigwams 
they sharpened the savage tomahavv'k and 
whetted the barbarous scalping-knife for bloody 
butchery, or smoked the pipe of peace as they 
watched theu" toiling squaws dress the buffalo 
robe or tan the hide of the wild deer. Here 
they taught the dusky youth the skilful use of 
the bow and arrow, or in the frail bark canoe 
skimmed the silvery surface of the lake in pur- 
suit of goggle-eyed perch and beautiful moun- 
tain trout. This is a spot where life is worth 
livhig and where nature has been so lavish in 
the dispensation of her beauties, that there is 
companionship, even though the hamits of man 
be far away. 

During the rainy season, when the Leona 
River is very high, it is believed to have a sub- 
terranean connection with this remarkable 
basin, and even has been known to overflow the 
surrounding land and pour in an exti-a supply 
of water. Going further along the line of the 
railroad the Nueces River and bridge are the 
next points of interest. It is a beautiful stream 
with characteristics similar to those we have 
just described. The bridge is solidly set upon 
stone piers, the material in which was taken 
from a quarry not far away, and is of the most 
durable quality. Many rancheros in this sec- 
tion have their houses constiaicted of this stone. 
Seen by the traveler the abodes impress him 
strongly as being the homes of comfort and 
happiness. Not far distant from Uvalde is Fort 
Inge, and a pretty village called WaresvUle, 
on the banks of the Nueces River. 

KINNEY COUNTY. 

The road leaving in this vicinity Uvalde 
County, next enters Kimiey, one of the extreme 
v/estern counties of the state, bordering on the 
Rio Grande. It is situated between the 23d 
and 24th degrees of longitude west from Wash- 
ington, and the 29th and 30th parallels of lati- 
tude. It is distant 125 miles west from San 



Antonio, and has an area of over 1400 square 
miles, with a population of 2Chdo Americans and 
Mexicans. 

It is almost exclusively a grazing country, 
bemg adapted expecially to sheep husbandry, 
of which we will speak more fully in time. 

With a system of irrigation which is very 
successfidly managed by those who undertake 
it, much land is cultivated and yields a large 
profit to the farmer. Crops by this means are 
kept growing from year in to year out. As 
a winter resort this county is unsm-passed. 

Leaving Uvalde, prepared for several weeks 
of camp life, we take an ambulance to explore 
the county more thoroughly in all directions. 
This trip we will briefly describe in a chapter 
appropriated to that purpose. At present our 
writing will be confined in a general way to the 
counties and territory traversed by the Sunset 
Route. The main line runs from Uvalde, 
crossing Nueces River, Turkey, San Moras 
and San Filipe Creeks to Del Rio, thence to 
the Rio Grande, along which it passes to the 
mouth of Devil's River and crosses it a few 
miles above, entering a very picturesque canon, 



reaching to 



CROCKETT COUNTY, 



one of the largest though yet unorganized 
coimties in this section of the state. This 
county is situated south of the 31st degree of 
north latitude, and between the 23d and 25th 
degrees of longitude west from Washington. 
The Pecos River flows along the western 
boundary, with many tributary creeks and 
springs. On the southwest it is boimded by 
\ery pictiu-esque scenery, and in the sight of 
many imposing views of the beautiful State 
of Coahuila — Mexico. 

Generally this vast county, though in many 
places it approaches the mountainous, is im- 
dulatiiig. In the more level parts near the 
river the fertihty of the soil is unsiu-passed. 
Of this 16,000 square miles very little is under 
cultivation, and timber is somewhat scarce, 
but for grazing p^uposes it is not excelled 
anywhere. Sheep husbandry and the raising 
of goats are followed with miprecedented suc- 
cess. The altitude is 2000 feet above the level 
of the gulf, and the climate is delightful, with a 
dry and healthy atmosphere. 

This region and others toward El Paso w"ill 
soon be better explored, and details will be 
given in an edition of this work next season, 
which will also contain glimpses of Mexico, 
Arizona and southern California. 

Before entering our ambvilance for the jour- 
ney overland, we will just glance at two west- 
ern counties traversed by the Eagle Pass 
branch of the Sunset Route. One of these is 

ZAV.\LL.\. 

South of Uvalde and adjacent to it, this 
county has very much the same topography 
and general characteristics of soil, climate and 
elevation. It is well watered by the rivers 
Leona and Nueces, by the creeks Turkey, 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT" AND "SONSET" ROUTE. 51 




52 



MAVERICK COUNTY. 



Las Minas, Oak and by Forked Lake. The 
land lying along these streams is very produc- 
tive and in most cases well timbered. A large 
portion of the better land is under cultivation 
and yields abundantly to the hand of the in- 
dustrious husbandman. The railroad pene- 
trates only a portion of the northwestern part, 
then passes through 

MAVERICK COUNTY 

to its Texas terminus. This latter county is a 
large, fine section of country, situated between 
the 23d and 24th degrees of north latitude. 
Its area is 1600 square miles and its popula- 
tion nearly 4000. Eagle Pass and the Rio 
Grande is the present terminus of the great 
Sunset Route, which stretches almost entirely 
across the great territory of Texas. This point 
is 160 miles west of San Antonio and 376 from 
Houston, the eastern terminus of the road. 
Just south of Eagle Pass is Fort Duncan, while 



across the Rio Grande is Piedras Negras. 
The agricultural advantages of this county are 
not so extensi\'e as those of other coimties we 
have passed over, but its pastoral greatness 
will compare favorably with the best sections of 
the state. The climate is warm but dry and 
very healthy. It is genial to the rich pasturage 
grasses that grow here and keeps them green 
the entire year. This perpetual verdancy of 
the grazing is the secret of the success of stock- 
raising here. 

The only river of any note besides the Rio 
Grande is the Tecasquite, but there are the 
Las Moras and quite a number of other creeks 
with rills and branches not a great distance 
from Eagle Pass. 

The geological formations on both sides of 
the river are soon to be explored, and as 
remarkable discoveries have already been 
made, we may be able to give some very inter- 
esting data in the account of our futtire ram- 
bles up the Rio Grande to El Paso. 




THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND '^SCNSET" ROUTE. 



53 



Rambles from Uvalde to the Rio Grande, 



AND FROM 



DEL RIO ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO EAGLE PASS AND PIEDRAS NEGRAS. 



WHEN we first traversed Texas from north 
to south, having come from the snow- 
covered northern states, it seemed to us so 
sti-ange to see great cypresses, hve-oaks with 
tangled vines, Spanish dagger, palmettoes, 
tall, rustling grasses in all tints of refreshing 
verdure, with thousands of croaking frogs 
in the midst of water plants, we were in- 
toxicated ^\■ith delight, but became in time 
accustomed to it and also to her almost never- 
ending freshness of verdiu-e. Now again 
traversing Texas from east to west, our en- 
thusiasm becomes renewed, especially by 
spending part of the winter and fall in the 
southwest section of this favored coimtry. 
There are at that time fewer blossoms, and the 
weather is somewhat cooler than during spring 
or summer, but in regard to the agreeable out- 
door life, the refreshing, balmy air on the high 
plains, the blue sky, and eternal verdm-e, the 
intoxicating delight we felt before returned and 
increased day by day, and we are now more 
in love with the "Lone Star State " than 
ever. These highland regions are bound to be- 
come the favorite winter resorts in the future. 
From them you will never be out of sight of 
momitains, beautiful prairies, valleys, wood- 
land, creeks and rivers. The longer you re- 
main the more yovi are infatuated. From San 
Antonio the cretaceous formation begins, ex- 
tending northeast toward Austin and south- 
west toward the Rio Grande. In Uvalde 
County it changes its course directly to the 
west, forming a natural line dividing two dis- 
tinct regions of geological formations, with an 
elevation gaining very rapidly. This, so little 
traveled region, we will traverse from Uvalde 
to the Fecos River, and from there along the 
•Rio Grande to Eagle Pass and beyond. 

One morning, which came sharply over the 
great plains, sending a thrill of joy through all 
nature, we are on the way to regions formerly 
abounding with wild horses, and black with 
bufialo. Now we meet on the highway men 
and women vigorous and quick with the glow 
of health, then a "prairie schooner" crowded 
with prattling children, extending their saluta- 
tory, " Howdy ! " alike to native or foreigner. 
Everything is sunshine and exuberant life. 
Our outfit consists of a well covered four-seated 
ambulance and t\vo good horses, with an old 



stage-driver as pilot, who years ago traversed 
the plains toward Mexico, El Paso and Santa 
Fe. Soon we pass a Mexican town, get some 
glimpses of Uvalde, and we are on our way 
to Turkey Creek Valley. We pass some 
fine fields fenced in with stone walls, showing 
ditches for purposes of irrigation. Fort Inge 
we leave to the right, and ascending a high 
plateau we overlook the Nueces valley, with 
the clear stream, from which its name is taken, 
gliding through the dense forests toward the 
Mexican Gulf. Occasionally the silvery sur- 
face reflecting the bright sunshine peeps up 
between high and rugged bluffs. In the dis- 
tance looms up the blue mountain range from 
whence all these streams are supplied. De- 
scending, we pass from time to time wagon 
trains returning from Fort Clark, Laredo or 
Eagle Pass ; finally passing through clumps of 
live-oak or mesquite we come to the Nueces 
River, and upon its banks pitch our first camp. 
It is a rule of importance never to "pitch tent " 
too near the river, but select a high elevation 
for protection against a sudden rise in the 
river of many feet, which is liable to occur 
without the slighest warning. Another rule is 
to get beneath shade-trees, to prevent exposure 
to the heavy dew of the night. Having taken 
these precautions we are soon settled for the 
night around a blazing fire. 

Not far from us is a camp of hunters just 
returning from an excur>ion to the Nueces 
mountains and canons. Our driver knowing 
the leader of the party introduces us, and soon 
an interesting chat is in progress which lasts 
until long after midnight. A word or two 
from the experience of these hunters might 
not be totally without interest to some of our 
readers of an adventurous turn of mind. They 
were bountifully provided with ammunition 
and with good saddle and pack-horses. Their 
course was due north along mostly the right 
bank of the Nueces River. About twenty miles 
up they found plenty of game, and about the 
break of day brought down from their roosts 
what turkeys they wanted. Farther uji, a black 
bear, caught in the act of feeding upon the 
root of bear grass, a favorite food, breathed 
his last. A Mexican lion prowling around 
in the evening fell reluctantly at the crack of the 
j unerring rifle. This beast, however, is rather 



54 



RAMBLES TO THE RIO GRANDE. 



scarce and his skin is prized highly. We 
made an ofter for the one they had, but were 
refused. Of wolves they found plenty in this 
locality, but shot only a couple of black coyotes, 
the pelt of which is also highly prized. All 
species of wolves are cowardly and will do no 
more than brave a lamb or some such helpless 
creature. They make night hideous to camp- 
ers by gathering round at a safe distance and 
howling at times in piteous shrieks, then in 
fierce cries. 

This party, venturing out from the river, dis- 
covered rich grazing grounds above the high 
water-mark. They jumped a wild-cat, but not 
having dogs made no attempt to pursue him. 
Mule-eared and cotton-tail rabbits darted from 
" the bush " on every side. Ducks and grouse 
of limited varieties frequent this region but 
quail are very abundant. Of the quail, the 
Mexican, the Massener and the common Texas 
bird predominate. The chapparal cock, with 
long tail and brown plumage, and with won- 
derful fleetness of foot, by which the necessity 
of taking wing is most always avoided, may 
be seen by any hunter. The marked peculiar- 
ity of this bird is its solitary habits, being 
rarely ever seen in company with any other. 
It has no value for the hunter. 

In attempting to extend their hunt further, 
they came to tuch broken country that a re- 
turn for rest, the refreshment of the horses 
and the saving of pelts that had been taken, 
was absolutely necessary. Among the furs in 
their possession was that of the black-tail and 
other deer, the wolf, the mule-eared and cot- 
ton-tail rabbit, the bear and the raccoon. The 
buffalo and antelope are to be found here, but 
are somewhat rare. The sportsman at Uvalde 
can equip himself with a complete outfit and 
have days or weeks of the best sport to be had 
anywhere in the land. A hunting party has 
to keep a sharp out-look for Indians, who 
sometimes waylay to kill and rob. A guide 
should always be engaged on such extensive 
trips. 

Some specimens of rich ore, iron and cop- 
per, were in possession of the ]iarty, but it will 
take a scientific party to investigate and locate 
the mines, also to estimate their wealth. 
Whenever this is done a new and great source 
of wealth will be opened to the public and en- 
terprising capitalists of the world. 

After a night of refreshmg sleep and a hearty 
but plain breakfast, we parted with our hunt- 
ing friends the next morning, and continued 
our journey toward Turkey Creek. But just 
before starting we enjoyed the sight of some 
beautiful landscapes both up and down the 
stream. Its course is very crooked here, its 
banks high and rugged, its current swift and 
clear, its bottom pebbly and many feet from 
glistening wavelets on the surface. Black bass 
and blue-cat are the predominating fish and 
can be caught in abundance. Strata of lime- 
stone streaking the high bluffs beautify the 
landscape very much. Taking the road, we 
passed during the journey not only much 



beautiful scenery but rich and productive prairie 
lands that are sufficiently elevated for the 
farmer and should be converted into beautiful 
rural homes. 

Before coming to Turkey Creek Springs, but 
not far from them, are some beautiful groves 
of pecan, which form the camping- ground for 
travelers and teamsters, and are the pride of 
Mr. Cline, their owner, a great hunter and ex- 
plorer. The springs bubble from the rocky 
ground and form immediately Turkey Creek, 
a tributary of the Nueces River. RIany of 
these trees are so close to the banks of the • 
creek that the roots form a perfect net-work, 
dipping down to the water's edge. The girth 
of these nut-bearing trees frequently measures 
eight feet, ranging down to four or five. The 
branches often reach so far out that they min- 
gle with those coming from the opposite side, 
and form a protecting green veil over the 
water that moistens their roots with nourish- 
ment as it flows on toward the Nueces. We 
reached this enchanting spot soon enough to 
take a short morning stroll and enjoy the sub- 
lime scenery of nature, and catch that medita- 
tive turn of mind that it so often imparts. 
Among the branches of these forest trees 
leaped the cat and fox-squirrel, and were 
heard the rich notes of the mocking-bird, the 
shrill voice of the lark and the gentle cooing 
of the dove. A thousand chirps and twitters 
came from every side, and the babbling waters 
played a sweet accompaniment as they toiled 
on seeking their own level. 

Remounting our ambulance we pushed for- 
ward and soon arrived at a station composed of 
several corrals and one store. Here we met 
a good German, Mr. Cline, of thirty-five years' 
experience in western Texas. He being a man 
of culture, shrewdness, and a keen eye for 
business, erected a large and commodious 
hotel here, with all modem improvements, to 
entertain visitors who come here to spend the 
winter season, with the luxuries of the day. 
The Sunset Route has made this an important 
station on account of the superior accommoda- 
tions of this hotel as a winter resort, and the 
fitness of Mr. Cline, the proprietor, to take 
proper care of his guests. Following Turkey 
Creek, which gets its name from the abundance 
of wild turkey found along its banks, we ad- 
vanced toward the Nueces River, where the 
two form a junction. On this stretch of road 
any amount of deer, duck, snipe, geese and 
other game are found. Even the bear hunter 
finds good game among the thickets and bluffs 
of this section. 

Our driver, who was an old Texan, and had 
lived in this region many years ago, said that 
the prairie here and further toward the Rio 
Grande, in earlier days, was perfectly nude of 
shrubbery, but for some years past had been 
growing mesquite rapidly, which aided the 
ground by its shade to retain moisture, which 
in turn produced grass abundantly, and is now 
making a fine grazing country of what was 
once almost without vegetation. The long 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT" AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 



55 



curly mesquite grass that grows here now all 
the year round is happily adapted to the fat- 
tening of stock. This new course of nature, it 
is thought, resulted from the prevention of 
prairie tires, that once every year used to be 
started by the Indians, and swept everything 
in the shape of ligneous material before them. 
An air line from Uvalde to this point would 
not be more than twenty miles, but the zigzag 
course of orn- road makes it about thirty. 
Hence we took the road toward Fort Clark 
and Brackettville, which are not over thirty- 
five miles distant. This road on either side is 
bounded by rolling prairies, which sometimes 
break into ravines and again stretch away, ter- 
minating in picturesque hills or ridges. Dur- 
ing the dry season these ravines furnish to 
travelers, hunters and herdsmen their chief 
supply of water from " water holes " that are 
formed in their beds. When the dry season is 
extraordmarily long these sometimes dry up 
too. 

This stretch of country is used for nothing 
but grazing, the only live water being Elm 
Creek, about twelve miles distant from Brackett- 
ville. On its banks we hurriedly drove, as 
dark was drawing on rapidly, pitched our 
camp and slept until two o'clock in the morn- 
ing, when, on account of the heavy dew, we 
built a fire. This was a signal for a concert 
by wolves, which was uninterrupted, except by 
the hideous notes of a screech owl, until the 
moon rose, when we gladly struck camp and 
sought the highway toward Brackettville. On 
the i-oute we met some suspicious lookmg 
characters, but they, mistaking us by the ap- 
pearance of om- ambulance for United States 
officers, willingly allowed us to pass without 
interruption. As daylight began to dawn in 
the east we neared Brackettville, and by sun- 
rise we were in town. Our driver had pre- 
pared us for a good breakfast and rest by 
telling us of a house kept by a former veteri- 
nary surgeon, who had allied himself matri- 
monially with a Mexican senora. Our expec- 
tations had not been raised in vain, for we 
drove up to a beautiful stone residence, sur- 
rounded with low-roofed outhouses, and a yard 
filled with many tropical flowers and plants. 
The house was built on a plan well suited to 
the warm climate, having verandas and piazzas 
on every side. The hail of our driver brought 
a response from a deep bass voice, the owner 
of which, upon being informed who we were, 
extended an invitation to come in. 

From the front gallery we were ushered into 
a !ieat clean room, in which were two beds, 
very inviting to the weary traveler, and other 
furniture betokening refinement and culture. 
Soon a blazing fire biimed in the fire-place and 
melted the stiffness of our limbs. Taking a 
good wash and drying our hands and faces on 
clean white towels, we felt like new men. 
Breakfast was announced, and we were ushered 
into a handsome eating-room and beheld a 
right royal feast, consisting of tenderloin beef 
and venison steaks, mutton chops, spring 



chicken, fresh butter, milk and eggs and well 
prepared birds. This was the work of the 
lady of the house, assisted by her beautiful 
daughter, half Mexican and half American, 
and, sooth to say, it was done to perfection. 
Not the Menger House of San Antonio, nor 
even the best hotel in the land, could excel in 
cjuality or preparation the meal that was 
spread before us. It is needless to say that 
we enjoyed it immensely. Breakfast finished, 
we looked through the house and found many 
evidences of taste and culture, which we later 
learned had been placed there thi-ough the 
instrumentality of the accomplished daughter 
of our host. From this place, which was on a 
rather elevated location, could be seen a large 
portion of the town, with Fort Clark just oppo- 
site on the outskirts, and forming an impressive 
view. Beneath, the Las Moras Springs, with 




their surrounding groves; to the west, an exten- 
sive prairie, which on its far side was bounded 
by the Las Moras range of mountains. 

On account, probably, of the topographical 
roughness of the country surrounding, the rail- 
road does not run directly through this place, 
but passes near enough to make it well worth 
the time and trouble of the tourist to make a 
visit here, if for no other purpose than to see 
Fort Clark. This government post is a thous- 
and feet above the level of the sea, and may 
be termed the look-out tower of all the sur- 
rounding country. The officers stationed here 
are men of the first rank, and are always cor- 
dial and hospitable in their treatment of visitors. 
In one of their comfortable ambulances a trip 
to the Las Moras Springs, among their natural 
and artificial groves, and encircled by elegant 
drives, is a rare treat. 

The landscape scenery in this vicinity would 
be inspiration to poet or painter, and would 
challenge comparison with scenery of a similar 
character anywhere. The Mexican women and 
girls washing, the children playing around, the 
water-carts making their constant trips, the 
mischievous boy ever playing some prank, the 
soldiers lolling about the springs with a sort o( 
dolce-far-niente air, and the herder resting from 
his arduous labors — form an animated scene 
that is probably not to be found elsewhere in 
this section of country. Far to the west and 
south valley after valley discloses its charms. 



56 



RAMBLES TO THE RIO GRANDE. 



and in the dim distance the San Rosa Moun- 
tains of Mexico draw their curving profiles 
upon the blue sky. Before you a sharp con- 
tour of the winding course of the Rio Grande 
is distinctly marked. On the right the Devil's 
River range of mountains and the Coahouila 
range attract the eye, and with their beauty 
invite the traveler, in terms whose silent 
eloquence is irresistible, to come to this land 
of promise and of plenty. Acting on this mvi- 
tation, we renew our course and drive west. 

We have now, in an air line, made about 
forty-five miles, but in our zigzag course made 
about double that, and have thereby seen more 
of the country than if we had come over the 
regularly traveled route. After i-eceiving the 
cordial treatment and the comforts of Sargent's 
hotel, we are surprised at having to pay only 
fifty cents a meal, and take our leave with 
many regrets. Leaving Fort Clark behind, we 
cast a glance around us and see the adjoining 
rocky ridge of hmestone, which we ascend 
starting toward Uel Rio. To the south the 
Fort Clark and Las Morras Hills — the latter 
with their noted Sentinel Mountain — form a 
panoramic view of the country that approaches 
grandeur in its effect. 

We reached a high plateau covered thickly 
with mesquite and chapparal groves, underlaid 
with rich pasturage grass. The quail, lark, 
dove and rabbit frequently flee from us as we 
advance. The Piedras Pinto Mountains lie to 
the north, and afford a pretty view as we cross 
the Arroyo Piedras, a clear, swift- ninning 
stream bordered with beautiful groves of trees 
and plots of shrubbery. Ascending to the 
plateau after leaving the bed of the latter 
stream, we are shown several ranches, where 
by attention to the herds large fortunes have 
been accumulated. Some of these live stock 
farms look rather dilapidated, but to us each 
one has a history fraught with deep interest. 
In the distance the Las Moras Mountains are 
seen with greater distinctness than ever before 
by us, and continue to be seen more plainly as 
we drive forward. Fording the Zoquete Creek, 
night catches us on Maverick Creek, and we 
pitch tent. These two streams, including the 
Sycamore and others, take their rise in the Las 
Moras Mountains, and flow in the same direc- 
tion. The landscape here has a peculiar 
appearance on account of the thickly growing 
Spanish dagger intermixed with cactus and 
yucca. Flocks of sheep numbering thousands 
browse from hill to hill, living upon the luxu- 
riant grass. 

While selecting our camping ground a new 
bird, the mountain falcon or Mexican eagle, is 
seen ; from here on it becomes quite common, 
while the American eagle is to be seen at 
intervals. Having selected a spot some dis- 
tance from the highway, we sleep for the night 
and resume before daylight our journey toward 
the Del Rio. 

The moon is in its last quarter, and mynads 
of stars give light sufificient to see the windings 
of the dim road, until by-and-by roseate Aurora 



begins to smile from the east and tip with her 
magic pencil the leaves of the trees and grasses 
of the fields. It is a gorgeous sight to see the 
myriads of dewdrops, pendant from as many 
twigs and grass blades, glistening like diamonds 
as far as the eye can reach. The lofty bluffs 
ot the Sycamore River are bathed in a flood of 
sunlight, while the waters below are gilded by 
scattered beams. Crossing this stream, a drive 
of several hours over a country similar to what 
has been described brought us to Filipe Sprmgs, 
the next point of interest. 

Descending a gentle slope, we came to the 
margin of a clear water ba>in. It is an immense 
bswl of cool crystal water, boiling and bubbling 
as if heated from the furnaces of Hades. Its 
depth is over sixty feet, and the water is so 
clear that the strata of limestone are plainly 
visible at the bottom. Huge trout, fruit for 
the "lone fisherman," spurt through the clear 
liquid, and seem at times to rest upon the white 
rocks. The white limestone at the bottom 
takes the shape of a beautiful water cave, which 
is distinctly visible to one peeping fiom the 
water's edge, and impresses the mind with its 
marvelous beauty and urusual appearance. A 
channel below forms the outlet for this great 
volume of water, and only a short distance 
down breaks into a rapid cascade, where the 
resthetic eye of the artist may feed with ecstasy 
and the practical optic of the artisan see visions 
of great mills and factories in lively operation. 
Just above the Filipe Springs is another group, 
which forms a considerable body of water, the 
surface of which is covered with water-lilies 
and other aquatic plants. These appear to 
have direct connection with the others, and 
there seems to be but little doul>t that there is 
an underground connection between them. To 
the south is San Filipe military post, which, 
like Fort Duncan, is one of the eyes of our 
government looking after invasions and depre- 
dations upon Us territory. This has natural 
fortifications, and is a valuable stronghold for 
the United States troops. 

It is anticipated that either the railroad 
company or private individuals will convert 
the above natural advantages into a desirable 
health resort by erecting a handsome and com 
modious building for the entertainment of 
invalids, tourists and sportsmen. In addition 
to the excellent bathing facilities offered there 
is an abundance of game, a genial climate with 
healthy atmosphere, and last, but not least, 
the sublime scenery presented by the far-reach- 
ing prairies, the San Rosa Mountains, the Rio 
Grande \'alley, and Devil's River with its 
precipitous blufifs. 

A drive of two miles crossing the upper 
springs brings us to Del Rio, a place of great 
importance as a winter resort. In a bee line 
this IS thirty-five or lorty miles from Fort Clark, 
but our course, as usual, made it much greater. 
Here we were received at Freeman's Hotel, 
where the accommodations are good and a 
warm welcome :s extended to travelers like 
ourselves. We find some members of the 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''S&NSET" ROUTE. 57 




EAGLE PASS — FANDANGO BY MOONLIGHT. 



;8 



RAMBLES TO THE RIO GRANDE. 



Engineer corps and afterward join their party. 
Del Rio was, before railroad time, like Uvalde, 
a place of much importance, the stage-coaches 
on the old Santa Fe route and other lines 
coming and going every day. It is a general 
rendezvous for herders, traders, speculators, 
rancheros, officers, soldiers and sometimes 
smugglers. Wholesale houses here formerly 
got their supplies by wagon from San Antonio, 
and furnished the whole country for miles 
around with merchandise and supplies. Vol- 
umes misjht be filled with thrilling adventures 
and stories of frontier towns, but want of room 
now forbids what we may say at some future 
time. The attractions of the town have been 
for some time past, and are now, constantly 
growing, and will eventually make this one of 
the most important towns on the Pacific exten- 
sion. Lately a few Indian scares have alarmed 
newcomers, but no attacks have occurred as in 
years past. The town itself, with a population 
of about 600 Americans and Mexicans, is regu- 
larly and tastily laid out. All through it run 
irrigation canals, which are managed judi- 
ciously by a company for that purpose. This 
company also has for rent large tracts of land 
subject to irrigation. 

On account of the great water-power of the 
San Filipe River this place may at some future 
day become a great manufacturing centre. 
Along this river are over 400x3 acres of irrigated 
land devoted to the cultivation of corn alone. 
Here are also many beautiful farms in a high 
state of cultivation. 

Almost within the corporate limits of the 
town is the celebrated Sugar Loaf Mountain, 
composed of former river strata, which became 
by some means isolated. It appears to have 
been once a part of, and is likely a renewal of, 
the old chain of hills which bounded this valley, 
but which have disappeared before the hand of 
time ; while this, being more durable, is still 
standing. Its top is aboat 200 feet above the 
ordinary level of the ground, and from it a mag- 
nificent view is to be had in any direction, and 
one which for unbroken range of sight is rarely 
equaled. Standing upon the apex of this 
cone, at your feet is Del Rio, with its water 
streets in the form of irrigating ditches. Across 
the river is the old Mexican town, antiquated 
in appearance, but none the less beautiful ; 
this is connected by numerous foot logs or 
rustic bridges built in a rude manner by the 
natives. A number of water mills, with their 
ponderous wheels moving slowly around, lend 
a pleasant effect to the impression made. For 
miles along the river banks beautiful farms 
with their neat cottages — something rare in 
this section— succeed each other in close 
proximity. A short distance off is the Rio 
Grande, and far beyond are the blue ridges 
of the Santa Rosa and Co ihouila ranges of 
mountains. The Rio Grande, in its serpentine 
course, doubles and quadruples itself over and 
over for miles within view. Looking to the 
east, the military posts are seen, and their em- 
bankments bristling with warlike associations. 



At the foot of these battlements the river steals 
along, forming a natural barrier against the 
invader. The eye reaching still further meets 
the foot hills of the Las Moras and Nueces 
ranges, and soon climbs the rock-ribbed sides 
of the mountain ranges themselves, the latter of 
which is reputed great in mineral wealth. In 
another direction, and near by, the custom- 
house shows up in full view, also the ferry and 
ford between Alexico and the United States. 

This is one of the many desirable places for 
the invalid to visit. Not only is the country 
healthy, but it is full of novelties and attrac- 
tions that will deeply interest his mind and 
imagination for weeks or months. Sources of 
inexhaustible wealth, yet untouched, are here 
for any one who desires to invest capital and 
reap a rich harvest . Material upon which the 
scientific mind can feed for a lifetime abounds. 

The mountains of Texas form the great 
sanitariums of nature, and should be made the 
resort of those persons who, in other states, 
have contracted diseases that the rigor of the 
climate will never allow to heal. Many in- 
stances of maivelous cures by the climate and 
mountainous district can be found in the region 
of San Antonio, where invalids have moved 
expecting to die, but in many cases entirely 
recovered their health ; and in others added 
years of happiness to what otherwise would 
have been miserable existences ending in early 
deaths. Some far-sighted capitalist or wealthy 
philanthropist will no doubt soon erect a com- 
modious structure, somewhere in these sources 
of health, for the accommodation and use of 
invalids and seekers after health. Such a 
building should be in an altitude of pure moun- 
tain air, and provided with all appliances con- 
ducive to the comfort and protection of the oc- 
cupants. Ample provision should be made for 
northers and the deleterious effects of the sud- 
den changes they sometimes produce in the 
temperature. " Wet northers " last twelve or 
eighteen hours, and are the most disagreeable. 
"Dry northers," though cold, are not so 
disagreeable, and may even be beneficial in 
purifying the atmosphere. It is seldom that 
either of them lasts long enough or is suffi- 
ciently cold to damage first trees or kill stock, 
though many instances can be found in the 
history of this country where such has been 
the case. The dry norther should be regarded 
more as a messenger of health than otherwise ; 
for, being free from miasma, its purifying effect 
is self-evident ; and bemg fraught with elec- 
tricity, that great health restorer, it has a very 
exhilarating and buoyant effect upon the human 
system. 

To resume our journey we crossed west from 
Del Rio and came upon a rolling prairie cov- 
ered with mesquite, cactus, some species of 
aloes and Spanish dagger, intermixed with a 
fine growth of rich grass. Here we passed a 
large sheep ranche, with its stables, corrals, 
pens and lots, where the owner gathered and 
counted his herds by the thousand. Passing 
on, the prairie became broken by bluffs and 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 



59 



small canons and the roadway almost obliter- 
ated by rocks ; but we, wishing to reach the 
camp of May Polk (the head of one of the En- 
gineer corps), situated about eighteen miles 
away, on the Rio Grande, pushed forward to 
accomplish the journey. The roughness of 
the country greatly impeded our progress, and 
in one instance came near upsetting our vehicle 
and turning out its contents. We escaped, 
however, and finally reached the camp of the 
Engineer corps, where we were cordially wel- 
comed and hospitably treated. During the 
latter part of this drive darkness approached so 
rapidly that we had no time for observations ; 
but oir awakenmg from a comfortable rest on 
the ground-floor next morning ample reward 
came to us in the sublime scenery that sun- 
rise revealed. Our tents, only a few feet from 
the bluffs overlooking the Rio Grande, stood 
beneath a grove of giant pecans. From here 
we took our tirst look, and were vividly re- 
minded of the beauties of the Hudson River. 
The yellow waters stretching toward the 
orient glistened and sparkled in the morning 
sunlight like a field of molten gold. In 
marked contrast to this was the emerald hue 
of the numberless groves of pecan trees lining 
its banks as far as the eye could reach. The 
gray rocks and precipitous canons fiu-ther in- 
creased the varied colors of the sublime land- 
scape and heightened the wonderful effect. 
E.\cept the Missouri, perhaps, the Rio Grande is 
different in appearance and characteristics from 
all rivers in the world. The turbid, boiling, 
surging water during a freshet, when giant 
trees are swept down by its current like mere 
twigs, fills the stoutest heart with terror. Es- 
pecially is this the case when it is remembered 
that these rises come down like a great ava- 
lanche without any premonitory warning. One 
moment the country is dry, the ne.xt it is the 
bottom of a living, raving sea that inundates 
the valley in the twinkling of an eye. But its 
habitual state is a placid, quiet and gentle one. 
The greater part of the shores of this mighty 
stream is not wooded, save where the many 
canons that widen into valleys bear trees and 
shrubbery of the most beautiful foliage. 

These treeless banks rise perpendicularly 
fi-om the water's edge to a height of many 
feet, while from their summits the bound- 
less prairies extend east and west for hundreds 
of miles, without even a twig to obstruct the 
sight or break their baldness. 

This locality where we now stand, though 
five hundred miles in the interior or from the 
mouth of the river, will soon be rendered ac- 
cessible to the world by the iron girdle of the 
Sunset extension as it circles the bluffs, rocky 
peaks and hills in this region of romance. 

The railroad measures should here be at 
once inaugurated, in order to bring within the 
reach of the ti-aveler the wonderfid gifts that 
nature has so benignantly granted this region, 
and which are now unobserved save by a few 
adventurous souls. The glorious mountains, 
rivers and prairies ; the beautiful glens, valleys, 



canons, hills and dales, decked in their emerald 
garments of luxuriant and never-fading foliage, 
should be placed before the eye of the in- 
valid, the tourist and the man of science. The 
pure and bracing atmosphere should inflate 
worn-out lungs and impregnate every particle 
of diseased bodies. The delicious and cool 
water should delight the palate and erase 
the seeds of disease from the skin. The 
healthy and nutritious vegetation of the fertile 
soil should strengthen the feeble and invigorate 
the strong. The wonders of this wild nature 
should be presented to the over-worked and 
exhausted brain of the business man, to create 
within him a stimulus to his jaded imagination 
and a restoring energy to his dormant fancy. 
To accomplish all of this the hand of the 
architect and the artisan must erect in this 
blooming wilderness, this western El Dorado, 
a monument to their own skill and the potency 
of capital. 

A hotel palace would be the most appropri- 
ate and appreciated design for such a monu- 
ment ; its fame would be borne along the 




"Sunset Route " from the Pacific Slope to the 
Atlantic Seaboard. Invalids and pleasure- 
seekers, from the remotest part of the Union, 
would be its constant visitors dm-ing the winter 
season ; the one, to gain health and to realize 
the dream of Ponce de Leon ; the other, to 
find fresh fields and pastures new for enjoy- 
ment. Just above the junction of Devil's 
River with the Rio Grande is the spot where 
this palatial hotel, this temple to the twin 
divinities of health and pleasure, should be 
built. There the grandeur of the well-named 
Rio Grande would delight the admiring eye 
from day to day; there the wind-swept bluffs of 
the Devil's River would become the scene of 
morning promenades and evening drives for 
the visitors from every city — not only distant 
cities, but those contiguous to the line of the 
railway. Such a structure as this, placed upon 
one of the elevated plateaux that far overreach 
the greatest altitude of the high water-mark. 



6o 



RAMBLES TO THE RIO GRANDE. 



would be simply a terrestrial Eden — a paradise 
whose rock-bound gateway could only be 
reached by the Sunset Route, and whose por- 
tals would open when her engines shrieked for 
admission. Out of dangei* of high-water, 
disease, extreme heat or extreme cold, and 
free from all the business cares that so poison 
and distract existence, one could then sit in 
luxurious apartments, breathing the purest 
breath of heaven, and beholding on every side 
the most sublime scenery, perhaps, on earth, 
for hundreds and hundreds of miles. 

This would be happiness, for health and lux- 
ury are happiness. At the base of the hotel 
plateau the broad bosom of the Rio Grande 
del Norte would heave in violent emotions 
with its swollen waters, or sigh, as if with the 
gentlest murmurs of love, from its tranquil 
depth. Hundreds of feet beneath, its winding 
course, through the emerald-hued fields, could 
be followed by the sight, until, like a tiny silver 
thread, it could still "be seen winding its way 
through a mighty ocean of green. Bounding 
this broad expanse, the Santa Rosa Mountains 
of Mexico could be seen lifting their towering 
tops to the skies. 

On the right, a short distance away only, 
the crystal waters of Devil's River mingle with 
the saffron waves of the dancing Rio Grande, 
and for miles and miles they glide along, crys- 
tal and saffron, side by side without com- 
mingling. 

Along the bluffs of these tvvo streams many 
a spot rich from the lavishness of nature, and 
many a steep declivity awful from its magni- 
tude, present themselves to the eye. Around 
the rocky precipices the iron monster winds 
his way, and, a hundred feet above the terrify- 
ing chasms, follows his steel track. Hills and 
valleys resound with his sharp voice, and 
every glen, dale and canon echoes his hoarse 
breathing and ponderous clanking. 

The reader, from this attempt to picture the 
situation, can do no more than get a vague 
idea of the glorious reality that awaits his com- 
ing. Life there becomes a dream, a beautiful 
vision, a fabric woven from sweets too delight- 
ful to seem real. 

With all of the pleasures presented by this 
lovely country, it has a store of wealth that 
cannot fail to attract the attention of business 
men. Its exhaustless quarries, its rich iron 
and copper ores, its fertile alluvial soils, its 
incalculable water power, are all sources of 
immense wealth — which are not often found 
in connection with inexhaustible pleasure and 
health. The railroad near this point crosses 
one of the oldest highways known to have 
existed in Texas. Two hundred years ago it 
was used by travelers in crossing this immense 
plain. Not far away are the Plains of the 
Pecos, where the buffalo may be hunted suc- 
cessfully even at the present day ; while in 
former times they grazed upon the prairies in 
large herds, and were hunted by the white 
man in a manner graphically described by 
Mr. George Catlin in Catlin' s iVorih American 



Indians. We take the liberty of inserting his 
entertaining accomit of the hunt : 

" Every one of these red sons of the forest (or 
rather of the prairie) is a knight and lord — his 
squaws are his slaves. The only things which 
he deems worthy of his exertions are to mount 
his snorting steed, with his bow and quiver 
slung, his arrow-shield upon his arm, and his 
long lance glistening in the war-parade ; or, 
divested of all his plumes and trappings, armed 
with a simple bow and quiver, to plunge his 
steed amongst the flying herds of buftaloes, and 
with his sinewy bow, which he seldon\ bends 
in vain, to drive deep to life's fomitain the 
whizzing arrow. 

" The buffalo herds, which graze in almost 
countless numbers on these beautiful prairies, 
aftbrd them an abundance of meat ; and so 
much is it preferred to all other that the deer, 
the elk, and the antelope sport upon the 
prairies in herds in the greatest security, 
as the Indians seldom kill them, unless they 
M'ant their skins for a dress. The buffalo (or 
more correctly speaking, the bison) is a noble 
animal that roams over the vast prairies, from 
the borders of Mexico on the south to Hudson's 
Bay on the north. Their size is somewhat 
above that of our common bullock, and their 
flesh of a delicious flavor, resembling and 
equaling fat beef. Their flesh, which is easily 
procm^ed, furnishes the savages of these vast 
regions the means of a ^^'holesome and good 
subsistence, and they live almost exclusively 
upon it, converting the skins, horns, hoofs and 
bones to the construction of dresses, shields, 
bows, etc. The buffalo bull is one of the most 
formidable and frightful looking animals in 
the world when excited to resistance ; his long 
shaggy main hangs in great profusion over his 
neck and shoulders, and often extends quite 
down to the ground. The cow is less in 
stature and less ferocious, though not much 
less wild and frightful in her appearance. 

" The mode in which these Indians kill this 
noble animal is spuited and thrilling in the ex- 
treme; and I must, in a future epistle, give 
you a minute account of it. I have almost 
daily accompanied parties of Indians to see 
the fun, and have often shared in it myself, 
but much oftener ran my horse by their sides, 
to see how the thing was done and study the 
modes and expressions of these splendid scenes, 
which I am industriously putting upon the 
canvas. 

' ' They are all, or nearly so, killed with arrows 
and the lance, while at full speed ; and the 
reader may easily imagine that these scenes 
aftbrd the most spirited and pictiu-esque views 
of the sporting kind that can possibly be seen. 

' 'At present I will give a little sketch of a bit 
of fun I joined in yesterday with Mr. McKenzie 
and a number of his men, without the company 
or aid of Indians. 

" I mentioned the other day that McKenzie's 
table, from day to day, groans mider the weight 
of buffalo tongues and beavers' tails and other 
luxuries of this western land. He has within 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



6l 



his fort a spacious ice-house, in which he pre- 
serves his meat fresh for any lenyjth of time 
required, and sometimes, when his larder runs 
low, he starts out, rallying some five or six of 
his best hunters (not to hunt, but to ' go for 
meat '). He leads the party, mounted on his 
favorite buffalo horse {i.t\, the horse amongst 
his whole group which is best trained to run 
the buffalo), trailing a light and short gimin his 
hand — such a one as he can most easily reload 
whilst his horse is at full speed. 

" Such was the condition of the ice-house yes- 
terday morning, which caused these self-cater- 
ing gentlemen to cast their eyes with a wishful 
look over the praii^ies ; and such w^as the 
plight in which om- host took the lead, and I, 
and then Mons. Chardon and Batiste Defonde 
and Tullock (vs'ho is a trader amongst the 
Crows, and is here at this time with a large 
party of that tinbe), and there were several 
others whose names I do not know. 

"As we were mounted and ready to start 
McKenzie called up some four or five of his 
men and told them to follow immediately on our 
trail with as many one-horse carts, which 
they were to harness up, to bring home the 
meat. ' Ferry them across the river in the 
scow, ' said he, ' and follow our trail through 
the bottom ; you will find us on the plain yon- 
der, between the Rio Grande and Pecos Rivers, 
with meat enough to load you home. My 
watch on yonder bluff has just told us, by his 
signals, that there are cattle a plenty on that 
spot, and we are going there as fast as possible. ' 
We all crossed the river, and galloped away a 
couple of miles or so, when we moimted the 
bluff ; and to be sure, as was said, there was 
in full view of us a fine herd of some four 
or five hundred buffaloes, perfectly at rest, 
and m their own estimation (probably) per- 
fectly secure. Some were grazing and others 
were lying down and sleeping ; we advanced 
within a mile or so of them in full view and 
came to a halt. Mons. Chardon ' tossed the 
feather ' (a custom always observed to try the 
course of the wind), and we commenced ' strip- 
ping ' as it is termed (/'. e., every man strips 
himself and his horse of every extraneous and 
unnecessary appendage of dress, etc., that 
might be an incumbrance in running) ; hats 
are laid oft", and coats and bullet pouches ; 
sleeves are rolled up, a handkerchief tied 
tightly around the head and another around 
the waist, cartridges are prepared and placed 
in the waistcoat pocket, or a half-dozen bul- 
lets 'throwed mto the mouth,' etc., etc., all of 
which take up some ten or fifteen minutes, and 
is not, in appearance or in effect, unlike a 
council of war. Our leader lays the whole 
plan of the chase, and preliminaries all fixed, 
gims charged and ramrods iix our hands, we 
mount and start for the onset. The horses are 
all trained for this business, and seem to enter 
hito it with as much enthusiasm, and with as 
restless a spirit, as the riders themselves. 
While ' stripping ' and mounting they exhibit 
the most restless impatience ; and when 



' approaching ' (which is, all of us abreast, upon 
a slow walk, and in a straight line towards the 
herd, until they discover us and run), they all 
seem to have caught entirely.the spirit of the 
chase, for the laziest nag amongst them prances 
with an elasticity in his step, champing his bit, 
his ears erect, his eyes strained out of his head 
and fixed upon the game before him, whilst he 
trembles under the saddle of his rider. In 
this way we carefully and silently marched 
until within some forty or fifty rods, when the 
herd discovered us, wheeled and laid their 
course in a mass. At this instant we started 
(and all must start, for no one could check the 




fui-y of those steeds at that moment of excite- 
ment), and away all sailed, and over the 
prairie flew, in a cloud of dust which was rais- 
ed by their trampling hoofs. McKenzie was 
foremost in the throng, and soon dashed off 
amidst the dust and was out of sight --he was 
after the fattest and the fastest. I had dis- 
covered a huge bull whose shoulders towered 
above the whole band, and I picked my way 
through the crowd to get alongside of him. 
I went not for 'meat,' but for a trophy; I 
wanted his head and horns. 

"I dashed along through the thundering 
mass as they swept away over the plain, 
scarcely able to tell whether I was on a buf- 
falo's back or my horse — hit, and hooked, and 
jostled about, till at length 1 found myself 
alongside of my game, when 1 gave him a 
shot as I passed him. 1 saw guns flash in 
several directions about me, but I heard 
them not. Amidst the trampling throng, 
Mons. Chardon had wounded a stately bull, 
and at this moment was passing him again with 
his piece leveled for another shot ; they were 
both at full speed, and I also, within the reach 
of the muzzle of my gun, when the bull in- 
stantly turned, receiving the horse upon his 
horns, and the ground received poor Chardon, 
who made a frog's leap of some twenty feet or 
moreover the bull's back, and almost under 
my horse's heels. I wheeled my horse as soon 
as possible and rode back, where lay poor 
Chardon gasping to start his breath again, and 
within a few paces of niin his huge victim, with 
his heels high in the air and the horse lying 
across him. I dismounted instantly, but Char- 
don was raising himself on his hands, with his 



62 



RAMBLES TO THE RIO GRAXDE. 



eyes and mouth full of dirt, and feeling for his 
gun, ■which lay about thirty feet in advance of 
him. ' Heaven spare you ! Are you hurt, 
Chardon?' 'Hi — hie, hie, hie, hie — no — hie 
— no, no — I believe not. Oh, this is not much, 
Monsieiu- Cataline — this is nothing new ; but 
this IS a d — d hard piece of ground here. Hie 
— oh! — hie' At this the poor fellow fainted, 
but in a few moments arose, picked up his gun, 
took his horse by the bit, which then opened 
its eyes, and with a hie and a ugh — UGHK ! — 
sprang upon its feet, shook off the dirt ; and 
here we were, all upon our legs again, save the 
bull, whose fate had been more sad than that 
of either. 

" I turned my eyes in the direction where the 
herd had gone, and our companions in pursuit, 
and nothing could be seen of them, nor indica- 
tion, except the cloud of dust which they left 
behind them. At a little distance on the right, 
however, 1 beheld my huge victim endeavoring 
to make as much headway as he possibly could 
from his dangerous ground, upon three legs. 
I galloped off to him, and at my approach he 
wheeled around and bristled up for battle ; he 
seemed to know perfectly well that he could 
not escape from me, and resolved to meet his 
enemy and death as bravely as possible. 

•■ I found that my shot had entered him a 
little too far forward, breaking one of his should- 
ers and lodging in his breast ; and from his very 
great weight it was impossible for him to make 
much advance upon me. As I rode up within 
a few paces of him he would bristle up with 
fury enough in his looks alone almost to anni- 
hilate me, and making one lunge at me, would 
fall upon his neck and nose, so that I found 
the sagacity of my horse alone enough to keep 
me out of reach of danger ; and 1 drew from 
my pocket my sketch-book, laid my gun across 
my lap and commenced taking his likeness. 
He stood stiffened up and swelling with awful 
vengeance, which was sublime for a picture, 
but which he could not vent upon me. I rode 
around hin^ and sketched him in numerous 
attitudes. Sometimes he would lie down, and 
I would then sketch him ; then throw my cap 
at him, antl, rousing him on his legs, rally a 
new expression and sketch him again. In this 
way I added to my sketch-book some invalu- 
able sketches of this grim-visaged monster, 
who knew not that he was standing for his 
likeness. 

' ' No man on earth can imagine what is the 
look and expression of such a subject before 
him as this was. I defy the world to produce 
another animal that can look so frightful as a 
huge buffalo bull, when wounded as he was, 
turned around for battle and swelling with 
rage ; his eyes bloodshot and his long shaggy 
mane hanging to the ground — his mouth open 
and his horrid rage hissing in streams of smoke 
and blood from his mouth and through his 
nostrils, as he is bending forward to spring 
upon his assailant. 

"After 1 had had the requisite time and 
opportunity for using my pencil, McKenzie 



and his companions came walking their ex- 
hausted horses back from the chase, and in 
our rear came four or five carts to carry home 
the meat. The party met from all cjuarters 
around me and my buffalo bull, whom I then 
shot in the head and finished ; and being seated 
together for a few minutes, each one took a 
smoke of the pipe and recited his exploits and 
his ' coups ' or deaths, when all parties had a 
hearty laugh at me, as a novice, for havmg 
aimed at an old bull whose flesh was not suit- 
able for food, and the carts were escorted on 
the trail to bring away the meat. I rode back 
with Mr. McKenzie, who pointed out five cows 
which he had killed, and all of them selected 
as the fattest and sleekest of the herd. This 
astonishing feat was all performed within the 
distance of one mile ; all \\ere killed at full 
speed, and eyery one shot through the heart. 
In the short space of time required for a horse 
under ' full whip ' to run the distance of one 
mile he had discharged his gun five, and loaded 
it four times — selected his animals, and killed 
at every shot ! There were six or eight others 
killed at the same time, which altogether fur- 
nished, as will be seen, alnindance of freight 
for the carts, which returned, as well as several 
pack-horses, loaded with the choicest parts, 
which were cut from the animals and the 
remainder of the carcasses left a prey for the 
wolves. 

" Such is the mode by which white men live 
in this country, such tlie way in which they 
get their food, and such is one of their delight- 
ful amusements — at the hazard of every bone in 
one's body, to feel the fine and thrilling exhila- 
ration of the chase for a moment, and then as 
often to upl)raid and blame himself for his folly 
and imprudence." 

Our party, after spending several days de- 
lightfully in this region, photographing and 
sketching many of the beautiful landscapes, 
procured a guide and made all necessary 
arrangements for a trip to Eagle Pass. The 
warm hospitality of the chief engineer and his 
able assistants, whose guests we had been, 
made us loath to say goodbye, or rather "au 
revoir," for we may see them again before our 
next issue, in \\hich we will give a fuller account 
of the Devil's River and the comitry surromid- 
ing it. We will also give a complete, and we 
trust an interesting, account of the country 
lying between the mouth of the stream and 
El Paso. 

Having made our preparations, we set out 
on the old Santa Fe trail, but had not gone far 
before we saw the necessity of having a guide, 
as we had driven entirely out of the road, and 
so were obliged to wait for hnn to direct us 
before we could either pursue our way or turn 
back. On this route we traversed a pastoral 
country rich beyond description, driving often 
along the banks of the Rio Grande, and then 
varying our journey by leaving the river for 
many miles. We were told that this country 
was, many years ago, the favorite resort of 
wild horses ; and as these noble animals will 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT" AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 63 




PAINTED CAVES, RIO GKANDE RIVER. 



64 



KAMBLES TO THE RIO GRANDE. 



eventually be exterminated or driven from the 
state, and never be seen by our readers, we 
fancy that a description of them, as given by 
Mr. George Catlin, would not be altogether 
without interest in these pages : 

"The tract of country over which we passed 
— the upper Rio Grande — is stocked, not only 
with buffaloes, but with numerous bands of 
wild horses, many of which we saw every day. 
There is no other animal on the prairies so wild 
and so sagacious as the horse, and none other 
so difficult to come up with. So remarkably 
keen is their eye that they will generally run 
' at the sight ' whea they are a mile distant, 
being, no doubt, able to distinguish the char- 
acter of the enemy that is approaching when 
at that distance, and when in motion will 
seldom stop short of three or four miles. I 
made many attempts to approach them by 
stealth, when they were grazing or playing 
their gambols, without ever having been more 
than once able to succeed. La this instance I 
left my horse, and, with my friend Chadwick, 
skulked through a ravine for a couple of miles, 
mitil we were at length brought within gun- 
shot of a fine herd of them, when I used my 
pencil for some time while we were under cover 
of a little hedge of bushes which effectually 
screened us from their view. In this herd we 
saw all the colors, nearly, that can be seen in 
a kennel of English hounds. Some were milk- 
white, some jet-black ; others were sorrel and 
bay and cream color, many were of an iron- 
gray ; and others were pied, containing a 
variety of colors on the same animal. Their 
manes were very profuse and hanging in the 
wildest confusion over their necks and faces, 
and their long tails swept the ground. 

"After we had satisfied our curiosity in look- 
ing at these proud and playful animals, we 
agreed that we would try the experiment of 
' creasing ' one, as it is termed in this country, 
which is done by shooting them through the 
gristle on the top of the neck, which stuns them 
so that they fall, and are secured with the 
hobbles on the feet ; after which they rise 
again without fatal injury. This is a practice 
often resorted to by expert hunters, with good 
rifles, who are not able to take them in any 
other way. My friend Joe and I were armed 
on this occasion each with a light fowling-piece, 
which has not quite the preciseness in throw- 
ing a bullet that a rifle has ; and having both 
leveled our pieces at the withers of a noble, 
fine-looking iron-gray, we pulled trigger and 
the poor creature fell, and the rest of the herd 
were out of sight in a moment. We advanced 
speedily to him, and had the most inexpressible 
mortification of finding that we never had 
thought of hobbles or halters to secure him ; 
and in a few moments more had the still 
greater mortification, and even anguish, to find 
that one of our shots had broken the poor 
creature's neck, and that he was quite dead. 
The laments of poor Chadwick for the wicked 
folly of destroying this noble animal were such 
as I never shall forget ; and so guilty did we 



feel that we agreed that when we joined the 
regiment we should boast of all the rest of our 
hunting feats, but never make mention of this. 

' ' The usual mode of taking the wild 
horses is by throwing the lasso whilst pur- 
suing them at full speed, and dropping a noose 
over their necks, by which their speed is soon 
checked, and they are 'choked down.' The 
lasso is a thong of rawhide some ten or fifteen 
yards in length, twisted or braided, with a 
noose fixed at the end of it, which, when 
the coil of the lasso is thro\vn out, drops with 
great certainty over the neck of the animal, 
which is soon conquered. 

"The Indian, when he starts for a wild 
horse, mounts one of the fleetest he can get, 
and coilmg his lasso on his arm starts off under 
the ' full whip ' till he can enter the band, 
when he soon gets it over the neck of one of 
the number ; when he instantly dismounts, 
leaving his own horse, and runs as fast as he 
can, letting the lasso pass out gradually and 
carefully through his hands, until the horse 
falls for want of breath and lies helpless on 
the gromid ; at which time the Indian ad- 
vances slowly towards the horse's head, keep- 
ing his lasso tight upon its neck until he 
fastens a pair of hobbles on the animal's two 
forefeet, and also loosens the lasso (giving the 
horse chance to breathe), and gives it a noose 
around the under jaw, by which he gets great 
power over the affrighted animal, which is 
rearing and plunging when it gets breath ; 
and by which, as he advances hand over hand 
towards the horse's nose, he is able to hold it 
down and prevent it from throwing itself over 
on its back, at the hazard of its limbs. By 
this means he gradually advances until he is 
able to place his hand on the animal's nose 
and over its eyes, and at length to breathe in 
its nostrils, when it soon becomes docile and 
conquered ; so that he has little else to do than 
to remove the hobbles from its feet and lead 
or ride it into camp. 

"This 'breaking-down' or taming, how- 
ever, is not without the most desperate trial on 
the part of the horse, which rears and plmiges 
in every possible way to effect its escape, imtil 
its power is exhausted and it becomes covered 
with foam, and at last yields to the power of 
man and becomes his willing slave for the rest 
of its life. By this very rigid treatment the poor 
animal seems to be so completely conquered 
that it makes no further struggle for its free- 
dom, but submits quietly ever after, and is led 
or rode away with very little difficulty. Great 
care is taken, however, in this and in subse- 
quent treatment not to subdue the spii-it of the 
annnal, which is carefully preserved and kept 
up, although they use them with great severity, 
being, generally speaking, cruel masters. 

" The wild horse of these regions is a small 
but very powerful animal, with an exceedingly 
prominent eye, sharp nose, high nostril, small 
feet and delicate leg, and undoubtedly have 
spnmg fi-om a stock introduced by the Span- 
iards at the time of the invasion of Mexico, 



THE ''STAR AND CRESCENT'' AND "■SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



65 



which, having strayed off upon the prairies, 
have run wild and stocked the plains from 
this to Lake Winnepeg, two or three thousand 
miles to the north. 

" This useful animal has been of great 
service to the Indians living on these vast 
plains, enabling them to take their game more 
easily, to carry their burdens, etc., and no 
doubt renders them better and handier service 
than if they were of a larger and heavier breed. 
Vast numbers of them are also killed for food 
by the Indians at seasons when buffaloes and 
other game are scarce. They subsist them- 
selves both in winter and summer by biting at 
the grass, which they can always get in suffi- 
cient quantities for their food. 

" Whilst on our march we met with many 
droves of these beautiful annuals, and several 
times had the opportunity of seeing the Indians 
pursue theni and take them with the lasso. 
The first successful instance of the kind was 
effecteil by one of our guides and hunters, by 
the name of Beatte, a Frenchman, whose 
parents had lived nearly their whole lives in 
the Osage Village, and who himself had been 
reared from infancy amongst theni ; and in a 
continual life of Indian modes and amusements 
had acquired all the skill and tact of his Indian 
teachers, and probably a little more, for he 
IS reputed, without exception, the best hunter 
in these western regions. 

"This instance took place one day whilst 
the regiment was at its usual halt of an hour, 
in the middle of the day. 

" When the bugle sounded for a halt, and all 
were dismounted, Beatte and several others of 
the hunters asked permission of Colonel Dodge 
to pursue a drove of horses which were then in 
sight at a distance of a mile or more from us. 
The permission was given, and they started 
off, and by following a ravine approached 
near to the unsuspecting animals, when they 
broke upon them and pursued them for several 
miles in full view of the regiment. Several of 
us had good glasses, with which we could see 
every movement and every manoeuvre. After 
a race of two or three miles, Beatte was seen 
with his wild horse down, and the band and 
the other hunters rapidly leaving him. 

" Seeing him in this condition, I galloped off 
to him as rapidly as possible, and had the sat- 
isfaction of seeing the whole operation of 
' breaking down ' and bringing in the wild 
animal. When he had conquered the horse 
in this way, his brother, who was one of the 
unsuccessful ones in the chase, came riding 
back and leading up the horse of Beatte, 
which he had left beliind ; and after staying 
with us a few minutes assisted Beatte in lead- 
ing his conquered wild horse towards the regi- 
ment, where it was satisfactorily examined and 
commented upon, as it was trembling and 
covered with white foam, until the bugle sound- 
ed the signal for marching, when all mounted, 
and with the rest Beatte astride of his wild 
horse, which had a buffalo skin girted on its 
back, and a halter, with a cniel noose around 



the under jaw. In this manner the command 
resumed its march, and Beatte asti-ide of his 
wild horse, on which he rode quietly and with- 
out difficulty until jiight ; the whole thing, the 
capture, and breaking, all having been ac- 
complished within the space of one hour, our 
usual and daily halt at midday. 

' ' Several others of these animals were caught 
in a similar manner during our march by 
others of our hunters, affording us satisfactory 
instances of this most extraordinary and almost 
unaccountable feat. 

" The horses that were caught were by no 
means very valuable specimens, being rather 
of an ordinary quality ; and I saw, to my per- 
fect satisfaction, that the finest of these droves 
can never be obtained in this way, as they 
take the lead at once when they are pursued, 
and in a few moments will be seen half a mile 
or more ahead of the bulk of the drove which 
they are leading off. There is not a doubt but 
there are many very fine and valiiable horses 




amongst these herds ; but it is impossible for 
the Indian or other hunter to take them, miless 
it is done by 'creasing' them, as I have be- 
fore described, which is often done, but always 
destroys the spirit and character of the animal. ' ' 

As we drove along our way oiu" reveries of 
wild horses, and the time when they trampled 
the very spot, perchance, where we were 
driving, were quite entertaining. Soon we 
crossed Filipe Creek and drove upon a table- 
land that stretched far ahead of us. Its sur- 
face was broken considerably by small canons 
extending out from the Rio Grande, but the 
soil was fertile. From this we descended into 
the valley of Sycamore Creek, a lovely and 
productive bottom. It was well timbered with 
large pecans and sycamores. This creek we 
mentioned before as we traveled to Devil's 
River. 

We thought of camping beneath these large 
trees, but when the guide called our attention 
to the high-water-marks among the limbs of 



66 



CROCKETT COUNTY. 



the trees we pushed ahead and passed some 
fiiie flocks of sheep herded by Mexicans. 

Large numbers of cattle also grazed upon 
these prairies, and among them were some of 
the fattest and finest we had ever seen, of the 
pure Texas beef. They had never been fed, 
nor had they ever eaten a particle of cultivated 
vegetation in their lives, yet they were fat and 
apparently in the best condition. They were 
not sheltered by sheds, as they received all the 
needed protection in severe weather from the 
heavy timber of the bottom-lands. An owner 
of some of the cattle, upon seeing our aston- 
ishment at the fact that they were Texas stock 
and yet so fine, explained that all large stock- 
raisers exchanged bull calves every year, in 
order to sustain the mixture of blood and pre- 
vent the enfeebling effects of "breeding in." 

We pitched our camp on a high bank just 
out of the valley, and were fortmiate in obtain- 
ing a view of a most magnificent sunset. The 
sunsets in this portion of the country are phe- 
nomenally splendid, especially at this season of 
the year. In the distance were observable the 
deep blue outlines of the Santa Rosa IMomi tains, 
contrasting exquisitely with the golden splendor 
of the clouds that had gathered, as has been 
their invariable custom ever since the world 
was made, around the sinking orb of day, to 
pay their last respects to the departing god 
and usher in with purple pomp the stars of the 
summer night.; it was ti'uly a lovely and divine 
picture. The next morning, arising from a 
sweet and undisturbed repose, we beheld even 
a grander sight, if possible, in the rising of the 
cloud-attended luminary. The wonders of the 
west were rivaled by the splendors of the east; 
each day seemed to us more beautifid than any 
we had ever seen. We continued our journey 
with practical eyes, however, and saw on all 
sides points of interest to the farmer and capi- 
talist, as well as to the artist and poet. The 
beautiful coiuitry we left behmd us was equaled 
by the rich tracts we continued to traverse. 
We finally crossed several pretty creeks and 
came back to the Las Moras, which we had 
crossed higher up on our westward trip. This 
placed us again in Maverick County ; and we 
cannot find a more suitable time in which to 
give the story of the origin of the name 
"Maverick," as used by Texans : 

' 'A certain well known ' colonel ' of the name 
bought an island in one of the rivers and stocked 
it with a few cattle, proposing to keep his 
animals where he could find them when he 
wanted beef or hides. Business entanglements 
claimed the worthy colonel's attention, and in 
course of time he well-nigh forgot his island 
colony. Rounders began to find among their 
herds ancient bulls and co\\-s, all guiltless of an 
owner's mark ; they came to be counted by 
thousands, and it was finally discovered that 
they were runaways from Colonel Maverick's 
island. The old colonel was informed by 
herders of his good luck, and told, among other 
things, that some two thousand bulls were sub- 
ject to his orders. The last thing recorded in 



connection with this legend is the colonel's ex- 
cited speech upon the occasion : ' For Heaven's 
sake, boys, go and help yourselves!' There- 
after any animal found without a brand was 
called a ' Maverick, ' and duly stamped with 
the finder's mark." 

Between Las Moras and Elm Creek the 
country is broken, though not well watered. 
In the distance of sixty miles, between Devil's 
River and Elm, we saw only about four ranches, 
although the prairie was covered with flocks. 

Looking to the northeast, from whence we 
came, the countiy had the appearance of being 
terraced, it being the decline from the elevated 
section we had visited. The formations, as we 
advance, are of limestone and sandstone. The 
plateau about Olmus Creek is almost level ; it 
is covered with good grasses and rests upon 
beds of coal. Iron ores are also found there 
with 50 per cent, clear metal. On Olmus 
Creek are some interesting specimens of posi- 
donomya, ooliths, also sauroliths and other 
petrifactions in the lias formation. 

Leaving this creek, Eagle Pass and Fort 
Duncan soon appear in sight. The bottom 
lands of the Rio Grande along here are exceed- 
ingly fertile, sugar-cane, corn and cotton grow- 
ing in the greatest liLxuriance ; some marshy 
lands covered with a tall grass are found on the 
route. Passing through a mesquite thicket we 
were rejoiced at finding ourselves in Eagle 
Pass, of which place we will speak at length 
in our next issue of this work. 

For the benefit of many of our readers, we 
will content ourselves with saying here that the 
broad valley of the Rio Grande is the same in 
soil as the valleys of the Colorado and the 
Brazos ; it bears the rankest growth of moun- 
tain cypress, oak, cedar, hickory, pecan, elm, 
ash, sycamore, Cottonwood and many other 
trees of noble size. Grapes and other fruit 
grow and flourish here also. 

CROCKETT COUNTY. 

The railroad crosses the Devil's River, which 
is spanned by a beautiful iron bridge high 
above water-mark, connecting in this way the 
shores close by the fording — a former old Indian 
ti-ail, and for years the military highway. The 
Dom Pedro, or Devil's River, with its emerald- 
like waters, runs many miles clear and swift in 
its stony bed, lined on both sides with rich 
groves. This part of the country has not been 
organized as yet, and but a limited portion is 
settled. The county has an area of about 
16,000 square miles, of which but very little is 
under cultivation. 

Herders and Indians state, that along Devil's 
River and its tributaries, along Ricardo Creek 
up to Willow Spring, Kuechler's Lake, Beaver 
Lake, Pecan Spring and Camp Hudson Spring, 
beautiful \-alleys are found which are well 
adapted for gardening, ranking as high as any 
soil of this description in this country. 

Crossing the river over the beautiful bridge, 

we enter Painted Cave Canon, winding our 

I way through rocky walls, a chaos of stones. 



THE ''■STAR AXD CRESCENT'' AND ''SUNSET" ROUTE. 




68 



PECOS COUNTY. 



In regard to vegetation, we notice little but 
cactuses and aloes of various kinds. We w^ill 
state here, too, that as to engineering, in no 
region in the United States is it surpassed by 
any oiher railroad. The tomust will see canons 
of the wildest character, and will have a sight 
of rare grandeur. It will certainly pay him to 
visit the celebrated "Painted Cave" with its 
magic chambers. Most of them have been 
used by those notorious tribes, the Apaches 
and Comanches, as their hiding-places, and 
many peculiar figures are either painted or 
chiseled into its rocky walls. 

Everything seems to have been comfortably 
arranged by nature to invite the toiu-ist to stay 
and rest. A cool, refreshing spring is close by 
for the weary teamster, and many a name on 
the surrounding rocks in the cave is proof 
and evidence enough that for years these caves 
have been, and are still, the abode and camp- 
ing-ground of many travelers, who, further 
west, may have perished for want of drinkable 
water. 

The western limit of Crockett County is the 
Pecos River, but before we come to it we 
have to pass three tminels through gray lime- 
stone mountains, which are respectively twelve, 
fifteen and sixteen hundred feet in length. The 
course of the Pecos River is marked on both 
sides by rich tracts of pasture-land ; the ground 
is fertile, bare of any growth of brush or tim- 
ber, but here and there alongside the bluffs 
there are groves of tall cedars. 

Traversing this region on horse-back, there 
is nothing to indicate the proximity of so large 
a stream. Descending into a wide canon, 
an extensive valley smooth with splendid 
grasses, we stand at once on the banks of the 
Pecos. Looking down we observe its waters 
movmg on silently, running in a smooth chan- 
nel. The water is of a dark hue, brackish, 
and has a decided sulphur and alkaline taste. 
The current is ratiier swift, about seven to eight 
miles an hom- ; its depth in many places is 
twenty feet, and over loo feet in width. In 
regard to its bed, it is remarkable for the 
great number of sharp bends, probably more 
so than that of any other river on the 
globe. Many of its side valleys are still a 
"terra incognita," aboimding in wild game ; 
but what is known of them and explored 
is easy to irrigate on account of the rapid 
inclination of this county, about ten feet to the 
mile. 

Some old Mexican settlers in this region, 
who live along the tributaries farther up the 
Pecos River, are growing fine corn and wheat 
crops, especially along the headwaters of How- 
ard Creek. They also tell that elks, panthers, 
buffaloes, moimtain lions, deer, wild turkeys, 
etc., are found in abundance in the northwest- 
ern portion of Crockett County, along the 
Pecos River, and that there are valleys enough, 
principally adapted for grazing. 

We cross the Pecos River on a bridge of 
rare excellence, and enter a still larger unor- 
ganized county, viz.: 



PECOS COUNTY. 

About fifteen miles from the river we come 
to ' ' Painted Rock Creek. ' ' Nature has here 
painted these rocks with similar colors as those 
world-renowned "Painted Rocks" on Lake 
Superior. The creek below is formed by some 
fine springs, known as "Painted Rock 
Springs. ' ' 

Going further down towards the Rio Grande, 
we traverse a high plateau, passing through 
wild and picturesque canons, with the Apache 
Movmtains in view, in the direction of Fort 
Stockton, where we will find nothing but 
sage, cactus, very seldom water and very little 
grass. Comanche Creek, near Fort Stockton, 
in this region makes an exception, inasmuch 
as it is proved that this whole tract would 
become fertile by ii-rigation, for the soil, water- 
ed by Comanche Creek, produces the finest 
kinds of corn, wheat and vegetables. The 
spring of this creek is said to be one of the 
most remarkable natural artesian wells in 
western Texas. Although an immense body 
of water, the thirsty earth soon absorbs its 
lively and swift-running waters. Those who 
intend to visit the Apache Mountains, which 
are exceedingly rough and abound in chasms, 
canons, and wild game, will come into an al- 
most unknown region, of which scarcely the 
outer edges are explored. 

As far as it is known, granite and basaltic 
formations predominate, while along the Pecos 
River lime and sandstone are found. As to 
minerals, all kinds of fables and stories exist of 
gold and silver ores in the Apache regions. 

Turning south toward the Rio Grande, the 
Horsehead Hills come in view, which are 
likewise very little known, but there are still 
some first-class ranges for agricultural pur- 
poses, and beautiful, fertile valleys with a 
scenery second to none in regard to sublime 
grandeur, even to those in the Rocky Moun- 
tains. 

The elevation in average of this region is a 
little over 5000 feet, and here you can see the 
highest peaks of the United States east of the 
Rocky Mountains. 

Pecos Coimty, with about 18,000 square 
miles, of which the greater portion is still un- 
occupied, has some large stock ranches and 
farms. Imagine only that these three im- 
mense counties, viz., Pecos, Presidio and El 
Paso, embrace an area of over 54,000 square 
miles, which is about the size of IS^'ew Hamp- 
shire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island 
and Connecticut, if put together. 

This region is traversed by well-defined 
mountain ranges, as the Guadalupe, Sacra- 
mento, Organ and Chinati Mountains. 

Travehng through this portion of the coun- 
try', one will see rich valleys with fine, nutri- 
tious grass, many streams, water-holes, etc, 
and this it is that makes it so valuable as a 
grazing country on this continent. Also, along 
the Rio Grande, the Pecos, the Toyah Rivers 
and other tributaries, we come to fertile valleys 



THE ^'STAR AND CRESCENT" AND ^^SUNSET'' ROUTE. 



69 



and mountains, the latter being partly covered 
with a rich growth of large timber, consist- 
ing of pine, mountain juniper and some species 
of oak. 

Without doubt there are precious metals yet 
to be brought to light, and since the railroad 
has traversed these territories expeditions have 
been organized to explore these parts of the 
country ; and by next season valuable results 
will be gained and published. 

The Southern Pacific Route now opens this 
vast territory, which is rich in minerals, and 
has a health-giving and invigorating climate. 
The railroad crosses diagonally the southern 
portion of Pecos County, and enters, 

PRESIDIO COUNTY, 

another grand, but still unorganized, country. 
It is bounded by the Rio Cirande with its 
many tributaries. 

Along these valleys fine settlements are 
found, and capitalists will have good chances 
for investment. The tourist may rest and lie 
over at Fort Davis, near Limpia River, about 
480 miles from San Antonio, and a little over 
220 miles from El Paso ; its elevation above 
the gulf is about 4700 feet. 

This important post was established in 1854, 
has a charmmg and healthy climate, and is 
situated at the outlet of a canon which is here 
over four hundred feet wide, but is finally lost 
in the mountains. The country looks sterile, 
with the exception of some live-oak and cotton- 
wood clustering along the banks of the Limpia 
River. In a line north and south across the 
entrance to the canon are the quarters of the 
officers, barracks, corrals, the executive office, 
the guard-house, and stables to accommodate 
about five hundred horses. The store-houses, 
the hospital and all those buildings are mostly 
built of adobe, and form a town by itself. A 
trip from this post to Wild Rose Pass, and from 
there to Seven Springs, in the Davis Mountains, 
will certainly pay the tourist if he wants to see 
grand scenery. Game is in abundance, and 
the air is fresh and balmy. 

The southern part of Presidio County is yet 
a "terra incognita." The Rio Grande makes 
there a great bend, guarded by several military 
sub-posts. Before long this beautiful spot will 
be opened to all by a railroad which will be 
built by the Mexicans along the Rio Grande up 
to El Paso. 

EX. PASO COUNTY, 

which is easily reached from Presidio, was first 
settled by Jesuits in 1620. El Paso Valley has 
an extension of over 140 miles and an average 
width of about six miles ; its soil is alluvial, 
rich and productive. The Rio Grande bounds 
the county on the west and south for a distance 
of over 100 miles ; on the southeast the bound- 
aries are Presidio and Pecos Counties ; the 
northern boundary, the 32d degree of north 
latitude, and divides it from New Mexico. The 



elevation of this county is about 4000 feet above 
the gulf; the whole country is broken and 
mountainous. The climate is dry and delight- 
ful, the rainfall slight, and fine products are 
raised by irrigation. The population chiefly 
consists of Mexicans, numbering about 4000, 
all of whom have their settlements along the 
Rio Grande Valley ; and now already, through 
the influence of the railroad, great changes 
have laken place. 

The railroad passes by Fort Quitman, situ- 
ated several hundred yards east of the Rio 
Grande and 619 miles from San Antonio. The 
country around is a sterile sand-prairie, covered 
here and there with cactuses and mesquite 
wood. Not far from here the Rocky Mountains 
rise abruptly and bare of any vegetation. At 
this post there is no chance to cultivate any 
vegetables. The buildings are made of adobe, 
and the fort is supplied by Mexican towns, viz.: 
Guadalupe, San Ignatio, San Elizario and El 
Paso. 

Farther up, and about three miles from El 
Paso, there is Fort Bliss, another important 
military post, situated on Concordia Ranch, 
about 3600 feet above the level of the gulf. 
The accommodations at this locality are excel- 
lent, and the people live comfortably, excepting 
the occasional experience of malarial influences 
from the bottom-lands of the Rio Grande. 
The portion along the river may be called a 
real garden spot, especially near El Paso, a 
city of importance and a railroad terminus. 
Wheat, corn, rye, barley, onions (the finest m 
the world), and vegetables of all sorts yield 
here astonishing crops. Peaches, pears and 
grapes are cultivated with profit, and in regard 
to the latter, even European varieties grow 
very finely, and before long this will rank first 
as a wine-cultivating country. In general these 
regions are treeless, except along the streams 
Cottonwood, willow, wild cherry, elm and 
mesquite are found. In some of the mountain 
ranges are large cedar forests, many trees over 
sixty feet in height, rarely met with elsewhere ; 
and with regard to mineral wealth, important 
discoveries are on record. 

We can say much of frontier life, and will 
take particular pains to explore those regions, 
so little known, and of which no correct maps 
have been published as yet ; and therefore in 
our next revised issue we shall bring new 
sketches and a more detailed description of 
stations and localities of importance, especially 
to the capitalist and the rancher. We have 
also in store some very romantic legends of 
frontier life. 

In conclusion, we may say again, this road 
completed — now ready for the iron horse from 
New Orleans to San Francisco — is one of the 
longest, most charming, most varied and 
delightful in the world. 

The great Southwest is now open, and the 
country will soon be the home of thousands of 
industrious people. 



ADIOS. 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



>AGE 

Spanish F(^rt, Sr. John's Bayou, 6 

Bayou Teche, g 

Sour Lake — Hardin County, - 17 

Cotton and Sugar-(Jane Field, near Houston, --.-.. 23 

San Pedro Park, -------.-.... 29 

Mission La Concepcion, ---... ,, 

Mission San Jose, - --..... 4^ 

View on Headwaters of the San Antonio, 47 

Medina Picnic Grounds, -j 

Eagle Pass — Fandango by Moonlight, ---..... rj 

Painted Caves, Rio Grande River, 63 

Guadalupe Mountains— Going to Market, - - . . 67 



THE "STAR and CRESCENT" and "SUNSET" ROUTE: 



THE SHORT LINE 



And Great National Thorough/are 



Texas, Mexico and the Pacific Coast. 













W fl^ 




T. W. PEIRCE. Jr. 

General Passenger Agent, 



MMHi 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 





787 4 



I )i u ii\ 



